AND   DEALERS   IX 

Fancy  article*,!! 
HiiiiUiville.  Ala.      (^    | 


COL.  GEORGE  WASHINGTON  FLOWERS 
MEMORIAL  COLLECTION 


PERKINS  LIBRARY 

Uulce   Universifrv 
Kare  Doolca 

The  "  highly  respectable  gentlemen  "  who  propose  to  conduct  our  party 
across  the  Desert  to  Mount  Sinai.— See  Letter  from  Cairn,  p.  205. 


HAL'S    TEAVELS 


A  TWELVE  MONTHS'  TOUR 

DriuNG  ■\vinou 

HE  SAW  MANY  WONDERFUL  THINGS  AND  A  VAST 
DEAL  OF  FUN. 

BY   A.   R.   WIGGS. 


NASHVILLE,    TENN.: 

PRINTED  FOR  THE  AUTHOR  BY  J.  B.  M'FERRIN,  Ag't. 

1861. 


Entered,  according  to  act  of  Congress,  in  the  year  1861,  by 

A.   R.   WIGGS, 

in  the  office  of  the  Clerk  of  the  District  Court  for  the  Middle 

District  of  Tennessee. 


STEREOTYPED  AND  FEINTED  AT  THE 
SOUTHERN  METHODIST  PUBLISHING   HOUSE,   NASHVILLE,   TENN. 


///  6,  ,,:,£> 


TO 

OF 

"MYRTLE   HALL  "   HUNTSYILLE,    ALABAMA, 

QDfjis  I^olumc 

IS  AFFECTIONATELY   DEDICATED, 

BY 

THE    AUTHOR. 

HoNTSViLLB,  Ala.,  Jan..  18G1. 


163715 


HAL'S   TRAVELS. 


I^ow,  ni}'  friends,  if  3'ou  feel  inclined  to  travel,  I 
would  be  pleased  to  have  you  quit  your  pleasant 
homes  for  a  season,  and  journey  with  me  into 
foreign  lands.  I  think  you  will  find  yourselves 
amply  repaid  for  all  the  toils  you  may  undergo,  for 
we  shall  visit  many  lands  and  many  peoples,  and 
shall  look  upon  sights  both  quaint  and  curious. 
"We  will  take  our  staves,  bind  on  our  sandals,  and 
provide  ourselves  with  scrip,  for  our  wanderings 
will  be  long,  and  maj^hap  wearisome.  I  promise 
you,  however,  fair  entertainment  and  genial  com- 
panions by  the  way,  for  we  shall  refresh  ourselves 
on  "praties"  with  our  Irish  friends,  herrings  with 
the  cannie  Scotch,  roast-beef  with  bluff,  honest 
John  Bull,  and  rabbits  with  the  hardy  Welch;  with 
the  polite  Frenchman  we  will  partake  of  wine  and 
■frogs,  sour-krout  with  the  pursy  Dutchman,  pipes 
and  lager-beer  with  the  German,  goat's-railk  and 
cheese  with  the  Swiss — and  then  cross  the  proud 
Alps,  and  eat  maccaroni  with  the  Italian.     We  will 

(5) 

163745 


6  HAL'S    TRAVELS. 

then  visit  Egypt,  and  test  the  quality  of  its  flesli- 
pots — sail  upon  the  classic  waters  of  the  Nile,  view 
the  wonderful  ruins  of  Thebes  and  Memphis,  climb 
the  mighty  Pyramids,  and — ride  donkeys.  Thence 
to  the  Holy  Land,  where  priests  and  prophets  dwelt ; 
to  Jerusalem,  where  our  blessed  Saviour  lived,  and 
moved,  and  had  his  being — preached  and  taught,  and 
healed  the  sick — was  crucified,  buried,  and  rose 
again.  We  will  stand  upon  the  mount  from  which 
he  ascended,  and  many  other  of  the  sacred  moun- 
tains of  Palestine ;  will  quench  our  thirst  at  the 
sacred  fountains,  and  bathe  in  the  waters  of  the 
Jordan.  Thence  to  Phoenicia,  Syria,  Turkey,  and 
the  classic  land  of  Greece. 

But  stop  !  to  make  this  journey  properly,  we 
must  begin  at  the  beginning ;  which  we  will  do  on 
the  following  page. 


HAL    S    TRAVELS, 


HUNTSVILLE  TO  KE.W  YORK. 


"Well,  our  trunks  are  packed — Pittman  comes 
round  with  bis  omnibus,  and  wo  ride  to  the  depot, 
where  the  "iron  horse"  stands  panting,  impatient 
to  be  going.  We  get  aboard.  The  "steed"  neighs 
— bounds  away — and  in  a  few  moments  we  lose 
sight  of  dear  friends,  and  the  lovely  little  city  of 
Huntsville.  One  tear — only  one — steals  down  our 
cheeks,  and  then  our  thoughts  are  reaching  forward 
to  scenes  that  lie  before.  "We  are  on  the  fast  line 
now,  and  shall  only  take  time  to  glance  hastily  at 
the  objects  along  the  way.  Reach  Chattanooga 
about  night,  and  "put  up"  at  the  Crutchfield 
House — because  we  see  no  other  house  to  "put  up" 
at.  In  the  morning,  ride  out  to  Lookout  Mountain, 
and  spend  the  day  with  the  Carey  family,  who  are 
not  onl}'  clever  people,  but  know  just  how  to  keep 
a  hotel.  Tlie  sccuer}^  from  this  mountain  we  shall 
not  lind  surpassed  this  side  of  Switzerland.  Return 
to  Chattanooga  in  the  evening,  and  on  the  arrival 
of  the  eight  o'clock  train,  are  joined  by  Mr.  Arthur 
Robinson,  who  is  to  accompany  us  on  our  travels. 
Wo  are  hcartih'  glad  to  see  him.  At  nine  o'clock, 
take  the  cars,  and  bid  farewell  to  Chattanooga,  not 
deeply  impressed  with  the  excellence  of  its  hotel, 


b  HALS    TRAVELS. 

but  willing  to  admit  that  its  proprietor  is  a  good 
man.  Run  all  night,  and  breakfast  at  Knoxville — 
most  of  our  fellow -passengers  taking  "  sugar  in 
tlier'n"  before  attacking  the  beefsteak  and  coffee. 
Leaving  Knoxville,  we  arrive  at  Bristol,  one  hun- 

<dred  and  thirty  miles,  in  just  twelve  hours  and  a 
half! — nearly  eleven  miles  an  hour!  Shall  remem- 
ber the  clever  conductor  on  that  part  of  the  line, 
/  because  he  stopped  several  times  to  let  us  pick  black- 
\  berries.  Remain  three  hours  at  Bristol,  and  listen 
rt- with  delight  to  native  music,  by  some  real  old  Vir- 
ginia negroes,  who  entertain  us  with  the  classic 
songs  of  "Walk  Jawbone"  and  "Hoopta-dooden- 
do,"  accompanied  with  the  banjo,  and  other  varia- 
tions. Leave  Bristol  at  nine  o'clock  P.  M.,  run  all 
night,  and  in  the  morning  find  ourselves  in  the 
midst  of  the  most  romantic  scenery  of  Virginia — 
the  blue  Peaks  of  Otter  towering  up  just  before  us. 
Breakfast  at  Liberty,  and  take  supper  at  Richmond 
— a  first-class  meal  only  in  price.  Leave  Richmond 
at  sunset,  and  at  daylight  next  morning  find  our- 
selves approaching  "Washington — the  nation's  capi- 
tal. We  stop  at  Willard's,  a  number  one  hotel — 
judging  by  the  bills  we  pay.  Find  some  half-dozen 
of  our  Huntsville  boys  here,  who  are  out  on  a  gene- 
ral "bust" — seeing  the  sights,  and  having  a  good 
time  generally.  They  will  accompany  us  to  ^ew 
York.  Stop  a  couple  of  days  in  Washington,  and 
look  round  at  the  lions.  View  the  Capitol  and 
other  public  buildings  with  pride,  and  conclude  that 
every  American  who  has  a  heart,  and  not  a  gizzard, 


IIALSTRAVELS.  9 

should  bd  pvoud  of  them.  Sunday  is  a  quiet  day  in 
"Washington  ;  most  that  is  to  be  seen  is  a  horde  of 
clerks  and  under-strappers  connected  with  the  dif- 
ferent Departments,  strutting  about  in  their  Sunday 
clothes,  looking  fiercely  Democratic.  Call  upon 
Secretary  Cass,  and  after  assuring  him  in  the  most 
positive  manner  that  we  are  truly  American  citi- 
zens, and  not  likely  to  be  drafted  into  foreign  ser- 
vice, he  grants  us  passports  for  our  foreign  travels. 

Leave  Washington,  three  o'clock  P.  M.,  i~)ass 
througli  Baltimore  at  telegraphic  speed,  and  arrive 
at  Philadelphia  ten  o'clock  at  night.  Spend  a 
couple  of  days  here.  Walk  through  Chestnut 
street,  and  stare  at  her  wonderful  stores.  The 
stream  of  people  on  this  street,  and  the  crowd  about 
old  Independence  Hall,  suggest  the  idea  to  some  of 
the  Iluntsville  boys  that  it  is  the  "First  Monday." 
Call  on  Siter,  Price  &  Co.,  fix  up  our  financial  mat- 
ters, and  leave  for  New  York — the  rollicking,  jost- 
ling, bustling,  rip-roaring,  go-ahead  Gotham,  where 
every  thing  and  everybody  centres  on  Broadway. 
Here  the  boys  are  dumfounded  with  astonishment, 
for  Chestnut  street  is  not  a  circumstance  to  Broad- 
way for  bustle  and  confusion.  We  stop  at  the  St. 
Nicholas,  the  finest  liotel  in  the  world. 

There  are  three  of  us  together  now,  bound  for  the 
Old  World,  Mr.  John  Gamble,  of  Limestone  county, 
having  overtaken  us  at  Philadelphia.  We  arc  won- 
derfully pleased  with  the  accession.  The  steamer 
City  of  Baltimore  lies  in  her  dock,  almost  ready  to 
put  to  sea.     We  take  passage  on  her  for  Liverpool. 


10  HAL'ST  RAVELS. 

• 

]5^ow,  having  joined  ourselves  to  "tlioSe  who  go 
down  to  the  sea  in  ships,"  we  shall  commit  our- 
selves to  the  vasty  deep,  looking  for  protection  to 
that  God  who  holdeth  the  winds  in  his  fists,  and  the 
mighty  seas  in  the  hollow  of  his  hand.  We  leave 
our  native  shores  and  our  friends  with  many  regrets, 
but  with  anticipations  of  much  pleasure  beyond  the 
water.  Should  we  get  safely  over  on  the  other 
shore,  our  friends  shall  hear  from  us  again ;  but  if 
otherwise  ordered,  and  we  should  be  in  old  ocean 
buried,  we  hope  to  meet  them  all  in  that  haven  of 
rest  where  sorrow  is  not  known,  and  where  love 
and  harmony  shall  reign  for  ever. 


HAL'S    TRAVELS.  11 


LETTER   I.* 

NEW    YORK     TO     LIVERPOOL. 

As  I  rock  and  roll  on  tlie  raging  billows  tins 
morning,  being  confined  within  doors  by  a  chilling 
rain,  I  will  redeem  my  promise  by  penning  you  a 
few  paragraphs. 

Ten  days  ago,  myself  and  two  friends  (Robinson 
and  Gamble)  wended  out  way  from  the  St.  Nicholas 
Hotel,  New  York,  to  the  ocean  steamer  City  of  Bal- 
timore, arriving  just  in  time  to  get  ourselves  snugly 
stowed  away  before  she  set  sail.  Found  great  con- 
fusion reigning  on  board,  and  the  continued  arrival 
of  passengers  and  their  friends  rendered  the  con- 
fusion worse  confounded.  The  starting  moment 
arrived.  The  bell  rang — and  then  such  crying, 
blubbering,  hugging  and  kissing  took  place  as  is 
seldom  seen,  except  on  similar  occasions.  The  last 
good-bye  was  finally  said,  and  the  noble  steamer 
glided  out  of  her  dock,  and  took  her  course  towards 
the  open  sea.  Expected  to  feel  awfully  sublime  and 
desperately  solemn  and  romantic  upon  witnessing 
the  gradual  disappearance  of  the  shores  of  my  native 
land — but  didn't.     Although  the  heavens  wept,  I 

*  This  and  most  of  the  succeeding  letters  were  addressed  to  and 
published  in  the  Huntsville  Independent. 


12  HAL'S    TRAVELS. 

remained  comparatively  -anmovecl,  for  the  chilling 
rain  falling  at  the  time,  and  the  dense  fog,  were 
death  to  romance.  A  few  hundred  yards  put  us 
out  of  sight  of  both  city  and  shore. 

Steamed  ahead  for  two  hours,  and  came  to  a  halt, 
owing  to  a  brisk  head-wind  and  dense  fog.  Lay  to 
near  Sandy  Hook  till  near  nightfall,  then  went 
ahead.  Spent  the  evening  in  reconnoitring  and 
studying  my  fellow-passengers,  of  wdiom  we  had  a 
large  number.  Came  to  the  conclusion  that  we  had 
several  "characters"  aboard  —  and  was  not  far 
wrong.  Felt  deep  sympathy  for  some  of  the  ladies, 
(blessed  tender-hearted  creatures  !)  who  were  still 
wiping  their  red  eyes,  sorrowing  for  those  they  had 
left  behind.  Was  somewhat  amused  at  the  chatter- 
ing of  a  couple  of  damsels,  (of  uncertain  age,)  who 
made  it  convenient  to  impress  the  fact  upon  all 
within  hearing,  that  they  were  setting  out  on  a 
European  tour,  to  be  gone  for  at  least  four  months. 
Have  since  learned  that  the  elder  and  more  strong- 
minded  of  the  two  intends  writing  a  book !  She 
will  no  doubt  "do"  Europe  in  style.  Shall  culti- 
vate her  acquaintance,  and  get  some  ideas  upon  the 
art  of  book-making. 

Eound  it  interesting  to  notice  the  assiduity  with 
which  several  young  gentlemen  labored  to  keep  off 
sea -sickness.  They  had  started  out  from  New 
York  with  a  bountiful  supply  of  medicine,  of  which 
they  imbibed  freely  and  frequently  from  wicker- 
covered  flasks.  They  soon  grew  hilarious,  and 
snapped  their  fingers  at  sea-sickness. 


II  AL'S    TRAVELS.  18 

Had  a  pair  of  Catholic  bishops  and  three  or  four 
priests  on  board.  Had  uo  difficult}-  in  singling 
them  out,  for  their  portly  persons  and  sleek  round 
Irish  faces  bespoke  their  calling  at  once.  Was  mis- 
taken as  to  one,  however,  for  the  jolly  red -nosed 
man  I  had  taken  for  a  priest  turns  out  to  be  a 
retired  New  York  merchant.  He  is  travelling  with 
his  family  for  pleasure.  Has  two  grown-up  daugh- 
ters— fine-looking  and  sprightly.  They  talk  like 
books,  sing  like  birds,  and  know  how  to  put  on 
airs.  They  look  "killingly"  at  m}'-  two  friends, 
John  and  Arthur,  but  the  effect  is  not  yet  very 
perceptible.  The  father  of  these  damsels  has  in- 
formed me,  "with  a  great  burst  of  confidence,"  that 
he  is  very  wealthy,  and  that  the  man  who  gets  his 
daughter  will  get  a  prize. 

Sunday  morning  found  us  far  out  to  sea,  with 
clear  sky  above,  and  smooth  sea  beneath.  Looked 
out  upon  the  dreary  waste  of  waters,  and  came  to 
the  conclusion  that  the  "sublime  grandeur"  of  the 
ocean,  so  much  spouted  about  by  poets  and  travelling 
writers,  was  all  humbug.  Saw  nothing  peculiarly 
"sublime"  about  it.  All  congratulated  ourselves 
that  we  had  escaped  sea-sickness.  In  the  afternoon 
a  whale — a  live  whale — intrepidly  came  alongside 
the  steamer,  blowing  and  spouting  most  obstrep- 
erously. l:Tot  so  large  a  fish  as  I  had  expected  to 
see ;  but  perhaps  my  idea  of  a  whale  was  extrava- 
gant. I  can  still,  however,  believe  the  story  of 
Jonah  and  the  whale. 

Late  in  the  afternoon,  the  wind  blew  hard,  and 


14  HAL'S    TRAVELS. 

the  sea  looked  angry,  as  tlie  white-caps  burst  and 
foamed  upon  its  troubled  surface.  The  ship  rolled 
and  rocked  like  a  restless  monster  of  the  deep.  Con- 
versation flagged,  and  a  serious  gravity  took  posses- 
sion of  most  of  the  passengers.  Your  correspondent 
felt  remarkably  serious.  Some  living  monster 
seemed  to  have  set  up  a  gallop  within  his  stomach, 
and  while  the  cold  perspiration  rolled  down  his  face, 
he  made  a  bold  attempt  to  go  below  to  his  berth. 
It  was  necessary  for  the  steward  to  follow  with 
broom  and  water,  for  he  soiled  the  clean  deck. 
There  was  a  heaving  on  all  sides,  and  a  demand  for 
bowls,  buckets,  etc.  Finally  got  below,  and  found 
John  in  his  berth,  rolling  and  groaning.  Joined 
him,  while  Arthur,  more  fortunate  than  we,  laughed 
at  us  most  barbarously. 

Monday  the  sea  was  still  very  rough.  The  sun 
shone  gloriously,  but  the  wind  blew  fierce  and  cool. 
Few  made  their  appearance  on  deck,  and  fewer  at 
the  table.  My  appetite  has  not  yet  come  to  me. 
Hope  to  find  it  in  Liverpool. 

On  Tuesday  morning  the  wind  was  blowing  great 
guns.  The  sea  boiled  like  a  pot.  Great  waves 
chased  each  other,  and  leaped  like  so  many  furious 
mad  bulls,  and  occasionally  mounted  even  upon  the 
upper  deck  of  our  noble  vessel,  as  she  struggled 
and  panted  to  surmount  them.  It  was  a  fearful  da3\ 
The  heavens  lowered  and  scowled.  Two  sails  were 
snapped  and  torn  away  by  the  gale.  Timid  lubbers 
looked  pale,  and  manifested  a  weakness  in  the  knees. 
Friend  Arthur  "caved  in"  that  day,  but  John  and 


IIAL'S    TKAVELS.  15 

myself  felt  too  serious  to  laugh  at  liim.  I  am  now 
willing  to  admit  that  all  that  has  hcen  said  and 
written  about  the  grandeur  and  sublimity  of  the 
ocean  is  true — no  humbug  about  it.  Ay,  but  the 
Atlantic  is  a  rough  old  bruiser — a  rollickinc;.  bluff 
old  bully — boxing  and  tossing  about  the  monster 
steamer  and  the  light  jolly-boat  with  like  ease  and 
impunity — and,  withal,  more  anti-bilious  and  anti- 
dyspeptic  than  all  the  medicines  ever  compounded 
or  concocted  by  that  "  retired  physician  whose  sands 
of  life  have  nearly  run  out."  If  it  was  only  at  play 
on  Tuesday — and  that  is  what  the  sailors  called  it — 
I  never  wish  to  see  it  angry. 

"Wednesday  and  Thursday  the  weather  was  more 
pleasant,  and  as  nothing  occurred  worth  writing 
about  on  those  days,  you  must  indulge  me  in  a  little 
eulogy  on  hogs.  I  respect  hogs.  In  fact,  I  may  say 
that  I  reverence  a  fine  fat  porker.  Ever  since  I  read 
the  account  of  the  Apostle  Peter's  vision  on  the 
house-top,  when  he  stopped  with  one  Simon,  a  tan- 
ner, at  Joppa,  I  have  had  a  weakness  for  swine. 
Yes,  with  all  their  hoggish  ways,  I  love  them.  They 
are  good  things  in  their  place.  Eut  I  do  protest 
against  their  being  admitted  into  the  saloons  of 
ocean  steamers.  There  they  are  out  of  place,  and 
should  be  put  out.  We  have  three  of  them  with  us, 
of  the  biped  breed,  in  the  shape  of  three  huge  beef- 
headed  English  bulls.  They  may  have  been  well 
raised,  but  if  so,  they  have  been  out  from  home  long 
enough  to  forget  their  raising.  They  have  no  con- 
versation for  anybody  except  each  other,  and  seem 


16  HAL'S    TRAVELS. 

to  look  upon  Americans  as  potatoes  too  small  for 
their  digging.  They  sit  opposite  us  every  day  at 
table,  and  annoy  and  disgust  every  one  who  sits 
near  them,  with  their  loud  talk,  bigoted  self-impor- 
tance, and  gluttony.  At  breakfast  they  monopo- 
lize every  thing  within  their  reach,  and  keep  the 
steward  trotting  for  'am  and  heggs.  At  dinner  they 
continually  call  for  roast  beef,  hale,  etc.  We  can 
scarcely  get  a  steward  to  bestow  any  attention  upon 
us,  and  it  is  so  annoying,  that  Arthur  has  more  than 
once  been  on  the  point  of  throttling  the  most  vil- 
lainous-looking one  of  the  trio.  John  and  your 
correspondent  would  delight  in  pitching  into  the 
other  two.  One  of  them  I  take  peculiar  pleasure  in 
detesting,  more  perhaps  on  account  of  his  looks 
than  any  thing  else.  He  is  a  hard-featured  crea- 
ture, with  short  chin,  very  large  mouth,  huge  nose, 
and  pop-eyes,  long  arms,  bowed-back,  and  bow-legs. 
If  he  were  a  good-looking  man,  his  manners 
might  be  bearable  ;  but  to  see  such  a  looking  crea- 
ture putting  on  airs  makes  me  mad.  One  of  my 
friends  gives  it  as  his  unbiased  opinion  that  these 
fellows  belong  to  the  latter  of  two  classes  that  in- 
habit the  world — to  wit,  natural  fools,  and  d d 

fools.  I  merely  record  this  as  my  friend's  indivi- 
dual opinion. 

Friday  we  were  among  the  icebergs.  "Wind  blew 
cold  like  winter.  Passed  three  during  the  day,  one 
of  which  seemed  to  be  a  quarter  of  a  mile  in  dia- 
meter at  the  base,  and  towered  up  two  or  three 
hundred  feet.     I  was  gazing  at  it  through  a  spy- 


II  AL'S    TRAVELS.  17 

glass,  when  a  Georgia  friend  came  up  and  wanted  to 
"look  through  that  brass  thing"  to  see  if  he  could 
see  any  bears :  said  he  had  heard  them  say  down 
in  Georgia  that  bears  could  alwaj^s  be  seen  on  ice- 
bergs. I  gratified  him  with  a  look  through  the 
"brass  thing,"  but  he  discovered  "nary"  bear. 

Saturday,  Sunday,  and  Monday  were  lovely  days ; 
sky  clear  and  serene,  and  the  atmosphere  bracing. 
The  sea  was  blue  and  beautiful,  and  I  passed  much 
time  on  deck,  watching  the  waves  as  they  sported 
and  chased  each  other  like  gleesome  children  at 
play.  On  such  days  I  love  to  sit  for  hours  together 
and  watch  the  rolling  and  swelling  of  the  deep  blue 
waters.  There  is  a  charm  about  the  sea  which 
grows  upon  one  in  spite  of  himself,  and  I  wonder 
not  that  seamen  become  so  much  attached  to  the 
briny  deep. 

Had  Divine  service  on  Sunday,  in  the  saloon. 
Passengers  and  sailors,  except  those  on  duty,  were 
called  together  by  the  ringing  of  the  ship's  bell. 
The  Captain  led  the  service,  which  was  Episcopal. 
The  Catholic  clergy  and  their  followers  refused  to 
be  present,  fearing,  perhaps,  that  coming  in  contact 
with  Protestantism  might  defile  them — not  a  Cath- 
olic remained  in  the  saloon.  In  the  afternoon, 
Catholic  service  w^as  held,  led  by  Bishop  Connor,  of 
Pittsburg.  The  burden  of  his  discourse  was  on 
Cliarity  !  The  Protestants  were  all  present  to  hear 
him — ■practicing  what  he  ow\y  preached.  At  night  we 
had  sacred  music,  and  indulged  in  some  good  old 


18  HAL'S     TRAVELS. 

camp-meeting  songs,  whicli  made  me  tliink  of  home 
and  tlie  revival  scenes  I  have  witnessed  there. 

Wednesday  morning  early,  was  aroused  from  my 
slumbers  with  the  joyful  shout  of  "Land!  Land!" 
Rushed  up  on  deck,  half  dressed,  and  after  straining 
my  eyes  for  some  time  to  penetrate  the  thick  fog, 
descried  a  long,  low,  black  streak  in  the  horizon, 
said  to  be  the  coast  of  Ireland.  The  fog  soon  blew 
away,  and  sure  enough,  there  lay,  in  all  its  beauty, 
the  Emerald  Isle — the  "gem  of  the  ocean."  Steamed 
into  the  Cove  of  Cork,  said  to  be  one  of  the  finest 
harbors  in  the  world ;  discharged  about  one  hun- 
dred passengers — among  them  the  Catholic  clergy, 
and  the  Yankee  spinsters  who  are  to  travel  four 
months,  and  write  a  book !  Leaving  Cork,  we 
steamed  ahead  for  Liverpool,  and  landed  here  early 
this  morning. 

So  here  we  are  in  Liverpool — the  great  commer- 
cial emporium  of  Great  Britain — one  of  the  first 
commercial  cities  of  the  world.  We  have  tramped 
round  most  of  the  day,  looking  at  the  magnificent 
edifices  and  some  fine  monuments.  Boot-blacks 
and  newsboys  annoy  strangers  a  good  deal,  and 
beggars  are  also  to  be  met.  We  shake  all  oS,  and 
keep  the  even  tenor  of  our  way.  To-morrow  we  go 
to  London,  and  from  there  I  will  write  you  again. 
Adieu.  Hal. 


hal'stravels.  19 


LETTER  II. 


LONDON. 


So  wc  arc  in  London  at  last !  London,  the  capital 
of  Great  Britain,  the  seat  of  royalty,  and  the  me- 
tropolis of  the  world — the  great  city,  the  smoke  of 
whose  furnaces  ascends  up  for  ever  and  ever,  and 
then  comes  down  again,  leaving  its  dark  impress 
upon  all  objects  below.  London,  where  Shakspeare 
lived,  and  wrote,  and  played,  and  sAvilled  his  'alf- 
aud-'alf ;  where  rare  Ben  Jonson  lived,  and  moved, 
and  had  his  being;  where  Goldsmith,  and  many 
other  poets  and  philosophers,  came  well-nigh  starving 
to  death,  and  where  Spenser  actually  did  die  for 
want  of  bread.  London,  where  princes  and  beggars 
jostle  each  other ;  where  millionnaires  and  gaunt, 
starving  wretches  stare  each  other  in  the  face;  where 
the  jungles  of  infamy  and  the  palaces  of  luxury  are 
within  a  stone's-throw  of  each  other ;  where  priests 
and  pickpockets  are  near  neighbors,  and  where  the 
philosopher  and  the  clown  swill  two-penny  beer  from 
the  same  pot.  Ay,  but  London  is  a  great  city,  and 
to  tell  of  but  the  half  I  have  seen  here  would  till  a 
book.  One  sees  so  much  here,  he  becomes  be- 
wildered and  sick,  and  gets  things  so  jumbled  up 
in  his  mind  that  it  is  next  to  impossible  to  get 


20  UAL'S     TRAVELS. 

them  untangled.  My  two  friends  and  myself  make 
it  a  business  to  keep  going  and  seeing,  but  when 
we  return  to  our  domiciles  at  night,  we  have  but  an 
indistinct  recollection  of  splendid  palaces,  magni- 
ficent churches,  beautiful  parks  and  gardens,  monu- 
ments, rich  paintings,  and  an  innumerable  multitude 
of  people.  Each  place  we  visit  would  require  days 
to  get  it  fairly  and  fully  impressed  upon  the  mind. 
One  should  stay  a  full  year  in  London  to  see  the 
"lions." 

I  find  that  we  are  known  here  by  all  classes  as 
Americans,  and  are  consequently  "set  upon"  by 
beggars,  and  continually  swindled  by  cab-drivers. 
Don't  know  what  it  is  that  betrays  our  nationality. 
Can't  be  our  dress,  for  we  dress  like  the  English ; 
nor  can  it  be  our  language,  for  we  speak  plain 
English ;  and  to  suppose  it  any  thing  like  verdancy 
in  our  appearance  would  be  absurd,  for  we  even 
labor  to  look  wise.  Yet  we  are  known  and 
"spotted"  as  "Yankees"  in  all  parts  of  London. 
It  may  possibly  be  our  good  looks.  Started  out  the 
other  morning  to  find  the  Thames  Tunnel.  Police- 
man tendered  his  services,  saying  he  knew  we  were 
Americans  and  strangers,  and  he  would  conduct  us 
to  the  proper  place  to  take  the  down-river  boat; 
gave  him  pleasure  to  serve  Americans,  as  he  had 
once  visited  Mobile.  The  agent  who  gave  us  tickets 
for  the  boat,  remarked  that  they  were  worth  eight 
cents  apiece,  as  we  probably  understood  the  Ameri- 
can better  than  the  English  currency.  Reached  the 
entrance  to  the  Tunnel,  paid  our  pennies,  and  as 


hal'stravels.  21 

we  passed  in,  the  gate-keeper  handed  us  a  printed 
description  of  the  great  and  curious  work,  saying 
we  miglit  take  it  back  to  America  ^vith  us.  Passing 
along  through  the  brilliantly  lighted  Tunnel,  were 
seen  by  a  musician  who  sat  near  the  opposite  end. 
He  recognized  us  at  a  distance  of  fifty  yards,  and 
struck  up  "Yankee  Doodle."  We  stopped  to  listen, 
and  then  approached  him  slowly,  when  he  commenced 
"Hail  Columbia."  "We  gave  him  some  pennies  and 
passed  on.  Upon  one  occasion  we  were  hailed  by 
a  newsboy.  We  refused  to  buy  the  Times,  when 
the  little  scamp  turned  up  his  nose  and  ran  off, 
crying,  "I  smell  Yankee  !  I  smell  Yankee  !"  And 
this  is  about  the  waj'-  we  are  continually  made  to 
remember  the  fact  that  we  are  foreigners  ! 

Leaving  the  Tunnel,  we  wandered  through  the 
venerable  precincts  of  Wapping,  that  we  might  see 
something  of  low  as  well  as  high  life.  Passed 
through  "Bleeding-heart  Yard,"  and,  not  far  dis- 
tant, saw  the  remains  of  "  Tom-all-alone's,"  and  if 
we  didn't  see  poor  "Joe,"  certainly  saw  his  suc- 
cessor. He  is  still  kept  "moving  on."  The  elder 
Mr.  Turveydrop  is  still  to  be  met  on  the  street,  but 
begins  to  look  seed}',  while  the  "young  man  of  the 
name  of  Guppy"  seems  to  be  doing  a  thriving  busi- 
ness in  Chancer}^  Lane. 

Have  visited  Greenwich,  about  six  miles  down 
the  river,  to  see  the  great  hospital  for  superannuated 
seamen,  the  Kaval  School,  and  the  Observatory, 
from  which  longitude  is  reckoned.  Same  day  paid 
a  visit  to  the  Great  Eastern  steamship,  the  largest 


22  HAL'S    TRAVELS. 

craft  ever  put  afloat — Noah's  ark  not  excepted. 
London  is  full  of  wonders,  but  this  monster  steamer 
is  the  greatest  wonder  of  them  all.  She  is  nearly 
seven  hundred  feet  long,  one  hundred  and  twenty 
feet  wide  across  the  paddle-boxes,  sixty  feet  deep ; 
has  nineteen  water-tight  compartments.  Has  five 
large  saloons,  two  of  which  are  seventy  feet  long. 
Diameter  of  the  side-wheels  fifty-six  feet.  Has  an 
enormous  screw-propeller.  Engines  three  thousand 
horse-power.  Has  five  decks.  Whole  ship  built 
of  wrought  iron.  Can  spread  six  thousand  yards 
of  canvass !  When  finished,  she  will  visit  the 
United  States.  Guess  Brother  Jonathan  will  go 
into  big  ecstasies,  and  tear  his  trowsers,  when  he 
sees  her  paddling  about  in  his  waters. 

Went  Sunday  to  hear  the  celebrated  Spurgeon 
preach.  It  was  with  difficulty  we  found  the  place. 
Met  a  respectable  "  Pecksniffian"  -  looking  gentle- 
man, aud  asked  him  if  he  could  tell  us  where  Mr. 
Spurgeon  -would  preach  that  day.  Hung  down  his 
head,  hemmed  a  little,  seemed  in  deep  thought, 
looked  up,  aud  asked  if  we  were  not  Americans  ? 
Told  him  we  were.  Hung  his  head  again,  paused, 
put  his  finger  to  the  side  of  his  nose,  and  repeated 
the  word  slowly  three  times,  "  Spurgeon,  Spurgeon, 
Spurgeon."  Shook  his  head,  rolled  up  his  eyes, 
and  said  "No  !"  Asked  a  cab-driver,  and  his  reply 
was,  "Two  shillin's."  Met  the  elder  Mr.  Turvey- 
drop,  and  put  the  question  to  him.  Put  the  head 
of  his  cane  to  his  nose,  and  said  he  was  sure  he  had ' 
heard  the  name  of  Spurgeon  before — quite  sure  he 


HAL    S    TRAVELS.  28 

had — but  really  could  not  tell  where,  when,  nor  in 
what  connection.  Policeman  told  us  to  go  to  Park 
Lane.  Another  policeman  said  "  No  —  not  Park 
Lane,"  Finally,  we  were  informed  by  genteel- 
looking  individual — very  genteel,  l)ut  a  little  seedy — 
who  spoke  with  all  the  confidence  of  a  Micawber — 
that  Mr.  Spurgeon  preached  at  Surre}'' Gardens — 
quite  sure  of  it,  for  he  lived  in  that  neighborhood. 
We  took  a  cab,  and  rode  three  miles  to  Surrey  Gar- 
dens, and  found  the  gentleman's  statement  correct. 
Found  the  great  hall  densely'  crowded,  and  the 
people  still  coming  in  streams.  With  difficulty  we 
got  standing  room.  Got  our  places  just  as  the 
preacher  commenced  his  first  prayer. 

Now  that  I  have  heard  Spurgeon,  perhaps  you 
expect  me  to  give  my  opinion  of  the  preacher  and 
liis  sermon.  It  may  be  presumption — and  is  pre- 
sumption— for  me  to  attempt  to  criticise  the  sermon 
of  a  man  whose  reputation  is  so  extensive  on  both 
sides  of  the  Atlantic.  But  I  speak  for  myself,  and 
nobody  else,  when  I  say  I  was  grievously  disap- 
pointed. Perhaps  I  expected  too  much — no  doubt 
did — but  I  say  what  I  believe  to  be  true,  and  what 
I  felt  to  be  true  at  the  time,  that  I  have  heard  ser- 
mons in  the  United  States  that  pleased  me  much 
better,  and  were  better  calculated  to  lead  sinners  to 
repentance.  Mr,  Spurgeon  is  a  good  man  and  a 
good  preacher,  but  if  he  is  worthy  of  his  great  repu- 
tation, then  I  am  dull  indeed.  His  style  of  preach- 
ing is  so  very  different  from  other  preachers  in  this 
country,  that  it  has  given  him  a  great  notoriety, 


24  HAL'S    TRAVELS. 

and  the  people  run  to  hear  him  in  great  numbers, 
because  they  are  ever  ready  to  hear  some  new  thing. 
"While  the  preachers  of  the  Church  of  England  de- 
liver dry,  windy,  punctilious,  big-worded,  written 
sermons,  Spurgeon  marches  up  oif-hand,  and  takes 
the  bull  by  the  horns,  just  as  some  of  our  preachers 
do.  He  calls  things  by  their  right  names  —  uses 
language  plain  and  easy  to  be  understood — and 
hence  takes  hold  of  the  people.  His  figures  are  apt, 
vivid,  and  to  the  point — homely  enough,  some  of 
them.  Voice  clear,  and  words  distinct ;  yet,  in  de- 
clamation, I  know  stump  -  speakers  in  Tennessee 
that  can  beat  him.  There  are  plenty  of  preachers 
in  our  country  who  could  get  up  as  great  if  not  a 
greater  furor  in  London  than  Mr.  Spurgeon  has. 
His  sermon  on  Sunday  was  preached  from  Matthew 
xi.  29 :  "For  I  am  meek  and  lowly  in  heart." 

Do  not  infer  from  what  I  have  said  that  I  think 
Mr.  Spurgeon  an  ordinary  man.  He  is  a  great 
preacher ;  and  we,  too,  have  great  preachers  on  our 
side  of  the  water — greater,  perhaps,  than  Mr.  Spur- 
geon. My  two  friends  are  entirely  delighted  with 
him,  and  differ  with  me  as  to  his  ability.  Mr.  S. 
looks  to  be  about  thirty  or  thirty-five  years  of  age, 
has  rather  a  boyish  face,  full  and  round,  wears  a 
high  shirt  collar  and  white  cravat,  to  make  him  look 
ministerial. 

But  enough  of  Spurgeon.  There  are  a  thousand 
things  I  might  write  about,  but  shall  not  do  it. 
You  may  expect  me  to  give  you  a  description  of  the 
splendid  House  of  Parliament,  of  "Windsor  Castle, 


hal's  travels.  35 

St.  rani's  Church,  National  Art  Gallery,  Hyde 
Park,  Regent's  Park,  St.  James's  Park,  and  the 
thousaitd-and-one  things  of  national  and  historical 
interest  here ;  hut  you  will  he  disappointed,  for  I 
shall  not  attempt  anything  of  the  sort.  I  didn't 
intend  from  the  start  to  write  any  such  letters. 
For  information  on  these  things  I  refer  you  to  any 
book  of  travels,  for  all  travellers  who  write  think 
themselves  in  duty  hound  to  describe  those  places, 
and  I  shall  not  follow  in  their  footsteps.  I  could 
not  do  it  without  copying  copiously  from  the  guide- 
books ;  hence,  will  not  try.  If  I  can't  be  original,  I 
won't  be  at  all. 

Went  down  the  other  evening  and  took  a  look  at 
Buckingham  Palace,  the  town  residence  of  Her 
Poyal  Highness,  Queen  Victoria.  Her  Majesty  not 
being  at  home,  we  didn't  call.  She,  with  her  little 
responsibilities,  is  on  a  visit  to  the  Isle  of  Wight. 
Left  a  few  days  before  we  reached  London.  Pre- 
sume she  did  not  know  we  were  coming. 

Shall  visit  the  Tower  of  London  to-morrow,  where 
all  the  State  prisoners  have  been  imprisoned  and  be- 
headed from  time  immemorial.  Place  of  terrible 
interest,  that  Tower.  Must  also  visit  the  House  of 
Lords  and  the  Crystal  Palace.  Sorry  we  have  not 
more  time  to  spend  in  London,  for  one  should  not 
run  through  it  in  a  hurry.  But  must  be  in  Paris  on 
the  15th,  to  witness  the  great  Napoleon /cte,  and  the 
miree  of  the  grand  army  of  Italy.  It  will  be  one  of 
the  greatest  pageants  ever  seeii  in  the  world.  It 
will  compensate  us  in  some  degree  for  the  disappoint- 


26  HAL's    TRAVELS. 

ment  in  not  getting  over  here  in  time  to  see  a  great 
battle  fought  in  Italy. 

Hold !  hist !  There's  another  hand-organ  thun- 
dering away  !  The  seventh  time  that  an  organ  has 
been  played  under  my  window  since  this  letter  was 
commenced !  I  acknowledge  my  weakness  for  mu- 
sic, but  must  confess  that  my  respect  for  Italy  and 
for  Italians  generally  is  daily  giving  way  under  the 
pressure  of  too  much  grinding  upon  the  organ. 
There  is  no  less  than  a  regiment  of  stout  Italians 
now  in  London,  assiduously  devoting  themselves  to 
the  profession.  It  would  be  a  good  thing  if  they 
could  be  put  on  a  cotton-plantation  in  Alabama, 
under  a  good  overseer. 

The  hotels  of  London  are  not  to  be  compared 
with  those  of  l^ew  York.  Upon  arriving  here  we 
stopped  at  Morley's  Hotel,  Charing  Cross,  said  to 
be  one  of  the  finest  in  London ;  but  to  those  coming 
from  Philadelphia  or  JSTew  York,  it  will  appear  as 
small  potatoes.  We  soon  discovered  that  the  charges 
ranged  at  least  fifty  per  cent,  higher  than  in  New 
York,  and  we  took  ourselves  suddenly  away,  and 
would  advise  our  friends,  if  they  ever  come  to  Lon- 
don, and  feel  economically  disposed,  to  take  private 
lodgings,  as  we  have  done. 

This  letter  is  long  enough.     Good-bye. 

Hal. 


hal'stravels.  27 


LETTER  III. 

LONDON. 

I  HAD  an  idea  before  coming  to  London  that  it 
was  a  great  city.  Am  now  convinced  that  it  is  all 
my  fancy  painted  it,  and  fifty  per  cent.  more.  Since 
my  last  letter  I  have  been  going,  going,  going  con- 
tinually, and  the  more  I  try  to  find  the  end  of  it, 
the  more  I  can't  do  it.  Have  seen  it  from  the 
"deck"  of  an  omnibus  for  ten  miles  at  a  stretch — 
viewed  it  from  the  tallest  towers  and  steeples — 
walked  it  until  my  feet  are  blistered,  and  my  mus- 
cles sore — and  still  it  seems  the  same  endless  Lon- 
don— full  of  interest,  full  of  magnificent  architec- 
ture, full  of  classic  localities,  and  full  of  wicked- 
ness. I  have  seen  the  "  lions"  and  the  "  elephant" 
— have  tramped  from  " Blackfriars"  to  "White- 
friars" — have  threaded  my  way  from  Pall-mall  to 
"Temple  Bar" — have  run  the  gauntlet  from  "Pud- 
ding Lane"  to  "Pie  Corner" — forced  my  way  through 
the  mass  from  "Billingsgate"  to  "  Cock  Lane" — 
scrambled  from  "Newgate"  to  " Dog's-Misery" — 
have  cabbed  it  frorn  "Regent's  Park"  to  "Surrey 
Gardens" — 'bussed  it  from  "The  Angel"  to  the 
"Elephant-and-Castle"— from  "Piccadilly"  to  "The 


28  HAL'S    TRAVELS. 

Eagle" — and  from  "  Charing  Cross"  to  "  Vauxliall 
Gardens" — in  short,  have  been,  it  seems,  almost 
everywhere,  and  yet  have  seen  but  little  of  London, 
comparatively. 

Visited  to-day  St.  Bartholomew's  church,  in  Smith- 
field  Market,  to  see  the  ground  where  so  many 
Christian  martyrs  were  burned  during  the  reign  of 
bloody  Queen  Mary.  Also  the  tower  erected  to 
commemorate  the  great  fire  of  London,  in  1666.  It 
is  an  immense  column,  two  hundred  and  two  feet 
high,  and  located  two  hundred  and  two  feet  from 
the  spot  in  "Pudding  Lane"  where  the  fire  origi- 
nated. After  its  erection,  the  following  inscription 
was  engraved  upon  the  base  : 

"This  pillar  was  set  up  in  perpetual!  remembrance  of  that  most 
dreadful  burning  of  this  Protestant  citye,  begun  and  carryed  on  by 
ye  treachery  and  malice  of  ye  Popish  factio,  in  ye  beginning  of  Sep- 
tem,  in  ye  yeare  of  our  Lord  16G6,  in  order  to  ye  carrying  on  their 
horrid  plot  of  extirpating  ye  Protestant  religion  and  old  English 
liberty,  and  ye  introducing  Popery  and  slavery." 

As  many  as  six  persons  have  committed  suicide 
by  throwing  themselves  from  the  top  of  this  monu- 
ment. Also  visited  Charter  House  Square,  where 
sixty  thousand  of  the  better  class  of  the  citizens  of 
London  were  buried  during  the  Great  Plague.  Also 
Bunhill  Fields  Cemetery,  where  rest  the  mortal  re- 
mains of  Rev.  Mr.  Fox,  the  founder  of  the  Quaker 
sect  of  religionists ;  Dr.  Isaac  "Watts,  whose  hymns 
will  be  sung  till  time  shall  be  no  more ;  John  Bun- 
yan,  whose  "Christian"  in  the  Pilgrim's  Progress 
will  ever  be  the  admiration  of  Christian  warriors ; 


UAL'S    TRAVELS.  2& 

and  many  others  arc  buried  there  whose  names  are 
familiar  to  Protestant  Christians  throughout  Chris- 
tendom. 

On  Sunday,  instead  of  going  to  hear  Spurgeon 
again,  went  to  the  "Wesley  Chapel,  and  after  service 
went  to  the  rear  of  the  church  and  saw  the  tomb  of 
the  great  divine  and  founder  of  Methodism.  Also 
the  ground  where  Goldsmith  is  said  to  have  been 
buried. 

Friend  Arthur  went  again  last  Sunday  to  hear 
Spurgeon,  and  came  back  rather  chapfallen.  Don't 
now  think  quite  so  much  of  him  as  he  did.  Says 
he  did  n't  preach  near  so  well  as  on  the  Sunday  be- 
fore— and  took  occasion  to  come  down  upon  Ameri- 
can slavery  with  a  vim ;  quoted  the  sixth  verse  of 
Psalm  ciii.,  "  The  Lord  executeth  righteousness 
and  judgment  for  all  that  are  oppressed,"  and  said 
that  was  a  "fit  legacy  left  by  David  to  the  slave- 
holders of  America."  "Won't  some  kind-hearted 
philanthropist  have  the  goodness  to  send  Mr.  Spur- 
geon a  copy  of  Ross's  Bible  Defence  of  Slavery  ?  I 
am  persuaded  that  the  overrated  individual  might 
read  it  with  profit.  It  is  said  that  Spurgeon  intends 
shortly  to  visit  America.  If  so,  I  trust  our  good 
people  will  endeavor  to  hold  themselves  on  the 
ground.  It  is  not  customary,  I  know,  for  them  to 
be  temperate  when  famous  foreigners  go  among 
them.  All  the  talent  of  America  might  come  to 
London,  and  there  would  not  be  half  the  sensa- 
tion manifested  as  in  New  York  when  Charles 
Dickens  went  among  them.     Guess  Spurgeon  will 


30  HAL'S    TRAVELS. 

meet  a  similar  reception.     If  so,  hope  he  will  write 
a  "  Martin  Chuzzlemt." 

I  have  been  through  most  of  the  parks,  many  of 
the  churches,  castles,  and  towers,  but  among  them 
all  found  no  spot  which  brought  up  such  thoughts 
as  the  Tower  of  London,  the  place  where  has  been 
shed  so  much  royal  and  so  much  innocent  blood, 
and  where  have  been  imprisoned  many  hundreds 
whose  names  adorn  or  blacken  the  pages  of  history. 
This  tower  is  an  immense  fortress,  surrounded  with 
a  deep  moat  which  can  be  filled  at  any  moment 
with  water  from  the  Thames,  on  the  banks  of  which 
it  stands.     In  the  centre  stands  a  tower,  from  which 
the  fortress  takes  its  name.     Tradition  says  it  was 
built  by  Julius  Caesar,  some  say  by  William  the 
Conqueror.      The   arms   and   armor    of   England, 
from  Edward  the  First  on  down  through  successive 
reigns,  are  still  preserved  here,  as  well  as  thousands 
of  other  relics  of  antiquity.     I  was  in  the  cell  where 
Sir  Walter  Raleigh  was  confined  for  twelve  years. 
It  is  small,  without  a  particle  of  light,  and  the  walls 
are  fifteen  feet  thick.     In  front  of  this  cell  stands 
the  block  on  which  so  many  have  been  beheaded, 
including  kings,  queens,    lords   and  ladies.      The 
fatal  axe  lies  beside  it,  blackened  with  rust — the 
same  axe  which  severed  the  heads  of  Lady  Jane 
Grey,  Anne  Boleyn,  Sir  Walter  Ealeigh,  and  hun- 
dreds of  others.     I  passed  through  many  cells,  but 
lingered  longest  to  gaze  upon  the  one  in  which  the 
gentle  Queen  Anne  Boleyn  was  confined  previous 
to  her  execution.     The  history   of   that  tragedy 


H  A  L  '  S     T  R  A  V  E  L  S .  81* 

passed  before  me,  and  I  almost  cursed  the  memory 
of  the  bloody  Henry  YIH.  I  thought  of  the  splen- 
dor and  pomp  with  which  she  was  received  at  the 
palace  (then  in  the  Tower)  on  her  espousal  to  the 
brutal  Henry.  She  was  on  that  occasion  escorted 
by  the  Lord  IMayor  and  his  train,  arrayed  in  scarlet, 
with  gold  chains  about  their  necks,  in  gilded  barges 
of  great  magnificence,  and  was  received  amidst  the 
raelod}'  of  trumpets  and  musical  instruments,  and 
a  mighty  peal  of  guns.  This  was  the  reception 
Henry  gave  her.  The  next  day  she  proceeded  from 
the  Tower  to  Westminster,  with  all  the  pomp  and 
heraldry  of  pride  and  power.  She  is  described  as 
tall  and  slender,  face  oval,  hair  black,  complexion 
rather  pale,  features  and  figure  symmetrical ;  and  it 
is  said  that  beauty  and  sprightliness  sat  on  her  lips; 
and  in  readiness  of  wit  she  was  unsurpassed. 

This  was  truly  a  splendid  beginning — but  what 
an  ending  !  Three  years  after,  the  tongue  of  jeal- 
ousy and  slander  aspersed  her  fair  name.  She  was 
committed  to  the  Tower,  a  prisoner ;  arraigned 
and  tried  for  unfaithfulness  to  her  roj^al  but  villain- 
ous husband,  and  pronounced  guilty.  When  her 
sentence  was  pronounced,  she  raised  her  hands  and 
eyes  to  heaven,  and  exclaimed :  "  0  Father !  0 
Creator !  Thou  who  art  the  way,  the  truth,  and 
the  life,  thou  knowest  I  have  not  deserved  this 
death  !"  She  was-  conducted  to  the  place  of  execu- 
tion without  being  permitted  even  to  see  the  cruel 
author  of  her  death.  Those  who  were  eye-witnesses 
of  the  scene,  record  that  her  beauty  on  that  day 


32  hal'stravels. 

was  mournfully  brilliant.  After  addressing  a  few 
words  to  those  who  stood  around,  she  laid  her  head 
on  the  fatal  block,  and  it  was  severed  at  one  stroke. 
Her  body  was  thrust  into  an  old  chest,  and  hurried 
away  to  the  vault  of  the  chapel,  in  front  of  which 
the  scaffold  stood.  The  place  where  the  scaffold 
stood  is  marked  with  black  stones,  while  the  rest  of 
the  court  is  paved  with  stones  of  a  light  color. 

I  have  visited  some  of  the  London  theatres,  and 
have  seen  the  boards  trod  by  some  of  the  ancient 
worthies.  Went  to  the  Haymarket  last  night,  and 
saw  a  play  which  might  be  performed  to  advantage 
in  some  parts  of  our  own  country — entitled,  "The 
Contested  Election ;  or,  the  way  M.  P.'s  get  their 
seats."  It  was  a  good  "take-off"  of  the  manner  in 
which  members  of  Parliament  are  made.  ISTone  but 
rich  men  can  get  a  seat  in  the  English  Parliament, 
for  almost  every  elector  has  his  price,  and  votes  for 
the  highest  bidder.  Have  learned  this  from  debates 
in  the  House  of  Commons,  where  about  a  dozen 
cases  of  contested  election  are  now  being  tried. 
The  proof  shows  that  nearly  all  were  elected  by 
bribery.  The  constituencies  being  small,  it  is  easier 
for  a  man  to  buy  them  up  here  than  in  the  United 
States,  where  every  man  is  a  voter.  They  have  a 
curious  way  here  of  managing  elections.  The  can- 
didate is  in  the  background — gives  the  canvass  up 
into  the  hands  of  a  club  or  committee.  He  fur- 
nishes the  money,  and  the  committee  hire  and  send 
out  "electioneerers."  The  "electioneerers"  buy 
votes,  paying  each  voter  his  price.     The  candidate 


hal'stravels.  3S 

justifies  himself  by  saying  that  he  is  a  poor  hand  to 
electioneer,  and  merely  hires  these  men  to  do  it  for 
him,  paying  them  for  their  time,  and  giving  them  a 
certain  sum  of  money  extra,  to  be  expended  for 
"refreshments."  Several  members  have  been  oust- 
ed within  the  last  few  days.  The  play  above  al- 
luded to  was  got  up  to  take  olF  the  cases  now  being 
tried,  and  does  it  admirably. 

The  city  of  London  proper  is  but  a  small  part  of 
London.  What  is  called  "  The  City"  is  independent 
of  the  rest,  having  its  own  government.  It  was  a 
walled  city  in  ancient  times.  Part  of  the  wall  still 
stands.  Temple  Bar  (an  ancient  gate)  remains  as  a 
remembrance  of  the  old  wall,  dividing  the  city  from 
the  new  part  of  London.  It  is  an  immense  arch, 
spanning  the  street  just  at  the  meeting  of  the  Strand 
and  Fleet  streets.  Upon  the  top  of  this  arch  the 
heads  of  desperate  criminals  used  to  be  placed,  to 
be  scofied  at  by  the  public. 

People  here  have  a  singular  idea  about  time  and 
age.  I  dropped  into  a  barber-shop  the  other  day, 
under  Temple  Bar,  to  get  my  hair  cut.  Found  the 
barber  a  loquacious  fellow,  as  all  barbers  are.  Told 
him  I  thought  he  had  a  good  stand  for  his  business, 
being  located  under  the  ancient  and  time-honored 
Temple.  "Bless  you,  sir,"  said  he,  "this  haint  the 
hold  bar.  This  is  the  new  'un.  The  hold  'un  was 
pulled  down,  it  got  so  rickety,  and  this  new  'uu 
built.  This  haint  'ardly  two  'undred  years  hold 
yet."     I  thought  two  hundred  years  a  good  old  age. 

Billingsgate,  I  am  persuaded,  is  hardly  maintain- 
2 


34  HAL's     TRAVELS. 

ing  its  ancient  reputation.  I  spent  half  an  Lour 
there  one  clay,  and  did  not  hear  more  than  half  a 
dozen  oaths,  and  but  few  indecent  expressions. 
The  coarse  language  of  this  place  is  notorious 
throughout  the  world. 

There  stripped,  fair  rhetoric  languished  on  the  ground. 

His  blunted  arms  by  sophistry  are  borne, 

And  shameless  Billingsgate  her  robes  adorn. — Pope. 

Billingsgate  is  a  fish-market,  and  is  about  the 
loudest  smelling  place  I  have  found  about  London, 
even  surpassing  the  river  Thames,  if  possible. 

Don't  know  but  Fbegin  to  feel  a  little  more  im- 
portant than  I  used  to  feel.  It  is  not  common  for 
plain  republicans  to  be  admitted  within  less  than 
bow-shot  of  roj^alty,  but  I  have  been  much  nearer ; 
in  fact,  almost  in  the  very  presence  of  the  royal 
family.  Through  the  intercession  of  the  American 
Legation,  I  was  granted  a  card  of  admission  to  the 
Queen's  Stables.  The  document  was  crowned  with 
the  royal  arms,  (to  wit :  a  lion  and  unicorn  rampant,) 
and  read  as  follows : 

Master  of  the  Horse's  Office,  ^^ 
Royal  Mews,  Pimlico.  J 

Admit  Mr.  Hal  and  party  of  two  to  view  the 

Queen's  Stables. 

J.  E.  Groves, 

Crown  Equerry. 

Did  myself  the  honor  to  call  at  the  Master  of  the 
Horse's  office  yesterday,  and  was  well  paid  for  the 
visit.     The   finest  stud   of  horses  I  ever  saw,  of 


hal'stravels.  35 

course.  There  are  one  hundred  and  fifty  horses. 
Great  ceremony  is  observed  at  these  stables.  An 
official  received  me  at  the  gate  in  rich  uniform — cut 
off  part  of  my  ticket  of  admission,  and  handed  me 
over  to  a  cockaded  gentleman,  who  conducted  me 
to  another  office,  where  I  was  required  to  register 
my  name  and  place  of  residence,  and  deliver  up  the 
rest  of  my  ticket.  A  third  individual  with  gold  lace 
and  shiny  buttons  conducted  me  into  a  stable  where 
stood  a  dozen  of  Prince  Albert's  saddle  -  horses. 
After  explaining  to  me  the  qualities  of  each  parti- 
cular horse,  (for  he  understood  "'orse-talk"  per- 
fectly,) he  handed  me  over  to  a  fourth,  and  thus  I 
was  conducted  through  all  the  stables,  coach  and 
harness  houses,  a  different  "gentleman"  accom- 
panying mo  through  each  place.  And  now  you 
know  how  near  an  approach  I  have  made  to  royalty 
since  my  sojourn  in  London. 

Guess  I  have  bored  3'ou  enough,  and  will  desist. 
Shall  go  to  Paris  to-morrow. 

Yours,  etc.,  Hal. 


36  hal'stravels, 


LETTER    IV. 

PARIS. 

I  AM  in  a  state  of  excitement  this  morning — be- 
wildered— in  fact,  I  might  say,  dumfounded — and 
the  reliability  of  what  I  write  on  this  occasion  may 
well  be  doubted.  I  have  seen  enough  within  the 
last  few  days  to  turn  the  head  of  a  sage,  or  to  com- 
pletely derange  a  man  of  ordinary  sense.  I  am  in 
Paris,  and  have  seen  something  of  Paris  life.  You 
don't  know  what  that  means,  nor  does  any  one  who 
has  never  been  here.  I  have  heard  of  Paris  and 
read  of  Paris  all  my  life,  but  had  not  the  most  faint 
conception  of  its  grandeur,  beauty,  gayety,  or  frivo- 
lity until  now.  It  is  the  place  of  places — the  city 
of  cities — where  voluptuousness  abides,  and  where 
wickedness  doth  abound ;  where  the  people  sit  down 
to  eat  and  drink,  and  rise  up  to  play — a  city  that 
seems  to  be  verging  upon  the  condition  of  the  great 
Babylon  before  its  downfall — because  it  seems  to 
me  she  makes  "all  nations  drink  of  the  wine  of  the 
wrath  of  her  fornication." 

I  have  seen  enough  since  my  arrival  in  Paris  to 
keep  me  writing  a  week,  and  to  fill  six  newspapers ; 
but  don't  be  alarmed — I'm  not  going  to  do  it.  I 
must  put  a  rein  upon  my  scribbling  inclination. 


nAL'STRAVELS.  37 

The  great  fete  of  the  age — yea,  the  greatest  the 
world  has  ever  known,  has  just  closed — a  fete  got 
up,  directed  and  managed  by  Emperor  I^Tapoleon 
III.,  backed  by  the  city  of  Paris,  and  aided  and 
assisted  by  the  entire  French  nation.  My  pen 
shrinks  back  appalled  when  I  think  of  attempting 
to  give  you  even  a  distant  glimmering  of  the  bril- 
liancy of  the  scenes  in  Paris  during  the  last  two 
days — to-wit,  Sunday  and  Monday.  It  can't  be 
portrayed  on  paper.  An  attempt  to  do  so  would 
be  simply  ridiculous.  I  can  mention  some  things 
that  were  done,  however.  The  entree  of  the  Grand 
Army  of  Italy,  headed  by  Napoleon  and  his  staff, 
was  a  scene  of  grandeur  seldom  witnessed.  It  was 
not  the  army  alone  that  constituted  the  beauty  of 
the  scene :  it  was  the  manner  in  which  it  was  wel- 
comed— the  immense  crowd  of  people — the  thou- 
sands upon  thousands  of  flags,  banners  and  devices 
which  greeted  the  war-worn  veterans — the  shouts, 
and  the  immense  showers  of  wreaths  and  bouquets 
showered  upon  them  from  the  windows,  the  bal- 
conies, and  housetops,  as  they  passed  the  streets. 
Their  march  was  from  the  Place  du  Trone  along  the 
Boulevards,  (the  broadest  and  most  beautiful  street 
of  Paris,)  a  distance  of  nearly  five  miles,  to  what  is 
called  the  Place  Vendome,  (a  square  in  which  stands 
the  great  column  surmounted  with  the  statue  of 
Napoleon  Bonaparte,  the  whole  cast  from  the  can- 
non taken  by  him  in  his  various  battles.)  This 
square,  which  is  four  hundred  and  fifty  feet  across, 
was    surrounded    with    seats,   capable    of   seating 


38  HAL' S    TRAVELS. 

twenty-one  thousand  persons,  all  of  wliom  were  of 
the  privileged  classes,  and  entered  the  place  by 
ticket.  Every  window,  and  the  balconies  of  the 
houses  surrounding  this  square,  and  even  the  roofs, 
were  filled  with  people — the  elite  of  Paris.  On  one 
side  was  a  crimson  velvet  canopy  over  a  tribune, 
where  the  Empress  and  her  royal  guests  sat  during 
the  four  hours  and  ten  minutes  that  it  took  the 
army  to  pass.  The  Emperor  sat  on  his  horse  in 
front  of  the  tribune  during  the  whole  time,  and 
greeted  each  regiment  as  it  passed.  The  brilliancy 
of  the  decorations  of  this  square  cannot  be  described. 
It  seemed  as  if  millions  of  dollars  had  been  expended 
for  banners,  arches  and  columns  ;  crimson,  blue  and 
purple  velvet,  trimmed  and  embroidered  with  gold 
lace,  were  suspended  from  every  window  around  the 
square.  The  Empress  sat  during  most  of  the  time 
with  the  little  Prince  Imperial  in  her  arms.  The 
little  fellow  was  dressed  in  the  uniform  of  the  Impe- 
rial Guards.  But  why  should  I  attempt  a  detailed 
account  ?  I  will  sum  it  up  by  saying  that  the  whole 
distance  marched  by  the  army,  from  the  place  of 
starting,  about  ten  miles,  back  to  the  Bastile,  was  a 
scene  of  flaunting  banners,  triumphal  arches,  crowds 
of  people,  both  on  the  streets,  in  the  windows, 
and  on  the  housetops,  and  the  continual  yell  of 
"Vive  I'Empereur!"  "Vive  I'Armee !"  "Vive  les 
Zouaves !"  etc.,  etc. 

The  procession  consisted  of  69,800  men,  and  144 
pieces  of  cannon,  besides  many  thousands  of  other 
troops   not  belonging   to   the   Army  of  Italy.     It 


IIAL'S    TRAVELS.  39 

took  four  hours  and  ten  minutes  for  the  procession 
to  pass.  There  were  63,000  infantry,  2800  cavalry, 
2400  artillerymen,  800  engineers,  and  300  with  the 
wagon-train.  I  do  not  know  the  number  of  soldiers 
not  of  the  Army  of  Ital}-,  though  there  were  many 
thousands.  There  were  also  6500  horses  attached 
to  the  cannon  and  w^agon- train.  The  regiments 
marched  about  sixteen  abreast,  headed  by  their  re- 
spective ofhcers.     The  order  was  as  follows : 

1st.  The  Emperor  and  his  escort,  (from  the  Bas- 
tile  to  the  Place  Vendome.) 

2d.  The  banners  taken  from  the  Austrians. 

3d.  The  Austrian  cannon. 

4th.  The  wounded  —  some  limping,  some  with 
bandages  around  their  heads,  and  others  with  their 
arms  in  slings. 

5th.  The  Zouaves,  composed  of  Turks,  Moors, 
and  desperate-looking  Frenchmen. 

6th.  Artillery  and  baggage-wagons. 

7th.  Infantry. 

8th.  Regiment  of  Lancers. 

9th.  Cavalry  of  the  Guard,  in  glittering  armor. 

10th.  The  Emperor  and  his  attendants  brought 
up  the  rear  from  the  Place  Vendome,  down  Rue  de 
Rivoli,  to  the  Palace  of  the  Tuilcries, 

After  the  street  had  been  somewhat  cleared,  the 
Empress  and  her  household  followed  on  to  the  Tuil- 
cries in  the  State  carriages,  each  drawn  by  only 
two  horses,  and  entirely  unattended  except  by  the 
footmen. 

We  had  a  good  opportunity  to  see  the  whole  of 


40  HAL'S    TRAVELS. 

the  procession,  having  a  stand  in  a  balcony  in  front 
of  our  hotel,  from  which  we  could  see  both  the  army 
and  the  masses  of  people  up  and  down  the  streets 
for  miles.  It  is  estimated  that  there  were  from  five 
to  eight  hundred  thousand  people  on  the  streets  on 
Sunday,  besides  what  were  in  the  houses  and  on  the 
housetops.  It  seemed  to  an  American  like  any  thing 
but  Sunday.  The  hundred  brass  bands,  the  scores 
and  scores  of  kettle-drums,  the  yells  of  the  masses, 
and  the  confusion  generally,  made  it  seem  more  like 
pandemonium  than  a  city  professing  to  be  Chris- 
tian. Hundreds  of  priests,  monks,  and  friars  were 
pushing  and  crowding  along  with  the  rest,  looking 
any  thing  but  meek  and  lowly,  as  would  have  be- 
come their  long  black  robes  and  shaven  pates.  The 
day  finally  closed  with  a  partial  illumination  of 
many  of  the  streets. 

But  Monday  was  the  big  fete  day.  Interesting 
and  brilliant  spectacles  were  got  up  and  carried  on 
during  the  day  in  every  part  of  the  city.  As  I  could 
not  see  all,  I  chose  to  go  to  the  Hotel  des  Invalides, 
(a  church,  fortification,  and  hospital  for  invalid  sol- 
diers, all  combined,)  in  which  is  the  Tomb  of  ISTapo- 
leon  I,,  and  in  which  was  sung  a  grand  Te  Deum, 
and  High  Mass  was  celebrated,  which  is  done  twice 
a  year,  viz.,  on  Christmas  and  on  the  15th  of  Au- 
gust. The  performance  was  rather  imposing,  but 
did  not  strike  me  forcibly.  The  high  dignitaries  of 
the  Church  were  dressed  in  rich  gold-embroidered 
robes,  and  looked  ferociously  pious ;  but  during 
their  wails,  lamentations,  waving  of  censers,  and 


Hal's  TRAVELS.  41 

beseechings  of  the  Virgin  Mary  to  pray  for  the  re- 
pose of  the  soul  of  Napoleon  I.,  I  could  not  but 
think  of  the  impious  manner  in  which  they  had 
desecrated  the  Sabbath  but  the  day  before. 

After  the  service  concluded,  I  spent  the  rest  of 
the  da3^  in  wandering  about  from  place  to  place,  see- 
ing the  various  shows  and  sights  got  up  for  the  oc- 
casion. The  large  plot  of  ground  in  front  of  the 
Invalides  (from  fifty  to  one  hundred  acres)  was 
crowded  with  exhibitions  of  all  kinds.  There  were 
five  or  six  circuses  going  on,  four  theatres,  the  whole 
fronts  being  entirely  open ;  several  platforms  on 
which  were  performing  rope-dancers,  dancing-girls, 
tumblers,  etc. ;  innumerable  Punch  and  Judy  shows ; 
monkeys  and  ponies  performing ;  one  or  two 
dozen  "flying-jennies"  on  which  twenty  or  thirty 
persons  could  ride  at  once;  several  sham-battles; 
four  very  tall  greased  poles,  on  the  tops  of  which  were 
hung  watches  and  other  trinkets,  prizes  for  any  one 
who  could  reach  them.  I  noticed  one  chap  who  had 
started  up  with  his  pockets  full  of  pulverized  chalk 
which  he  rubbed  upon  the  pole  as  he  ascended.  He 
had  almost  reached  the  prize,  but  my  attention  being 
called  to  sometliing  else,  I  did  not  see  how  he  came 
out.  Balloons  in  the  shape  of  mammoth  bulls, 
lions,  leopards,  and  men,  were  sent  up  at  intervals 
during  the  day,  and  late  in  the  evening  a  very  large 
balloon  was  let  off  with  two  men  in  the  car  attached. 
They  went  vcr}'  high,  and  soon  disappeared  in  the 
distance.  All  these  exhibitions  were  free  to  the  pub- 
lic, being  paid  for  l)y  the  government. 


42  hal'stravels. 

Late  in  the  evening  I  wandered  through  the  large 
open  spaces  of  the  Champs  Elysees,  Place  de  la 
Concorde,  the  Tuileries  Gardens  and  Grove,  the 
streets  de  Rivoli,  Boulevards,  and  the  Place  Yen- 
dome,  and  found  them  all  crowded  alike  with  a 
dense  mass  of  men  and  women.  It  would  be  im- 
possible almost  to  exaggerate  the  number  of  people. 
Were  I  to  say  I  saw  a  thousand  acres  of  human 
beings,  I  should  fall  short  of  the  mark,  and  I  saw 
but  a  small  portion  of  the  city. 

But  now  I  come  to  the  illumination  at  night. 
"What  shall  I  say  ?  What  can  I  say  about  it  ?  Its 
beauty  was  a  thousand  degrees  beyond  any  thing  I 
had  dreamed  of.  If  I  were  to  study  and  Avrite  for 
twelve  months,  and  employ  every  word  in  the  Eng- 
lish language  that  signifies,  either  directly  or  re- 
motely, the  beautiful,  you  would  have  but  a  faint 
glimmering  of  the  scene  I  would  attempt  to  paint. 
Every  street,  every  house,  every  garden,  every  foun- 
tain, every  tree,  every  column,  monument,  and 
statue,  was  brilliant.  The  number  of  lights  was 
beyond  calculation.  Figures  and  devices  of  every 
fantastic  shape  could  be  seen  —  festoons,  eagles, 
chicken-cocks,  banners,  palaces,  pyramids,  etc.,  etc., 
could  be  seen  on  every  hand.  The  whole  city  was 
as  light  as  day,  and  the  streets  as  densely  crowded 
as  could  be.  Our  hotel  (de  Rivoli)  fronts  the  Tuil- 
eries Gardens,  and  the  scene  from  our  balcony  was 
as  fine  as  could  be  had  from  any  point.  We  could 
see  for  miles. 

The  grand  fireworks  commenced  about  9  o'clock, 


HAL'S    TRAVELS.  43 

and  if  Vesuvius  ever  presented  a  finer  appearance, 
it  was  certainly  astonishing  to  the  natives.  The 
fireworks,  like  the  illuminating  lamps,  were  of  the 
tri-color — red,  white,  and  blue. 

To  conclude,  it  is  estimated  that  there  were  more 
people  in  Paris  by  far  j^esterday  than  were  ever  here 
before,  and  that  more  money  was  expended  in  getting 
up  the  fetes  than  was  ever  expended  since  the  world 
began. 

I  have  much  more  to  write,  but  must  reserve  it 
for  another  occasion.  I  must  see  more  of  Paris,  and 
will  next  time  write  you  a  more  interesting  letter. 
For  the  present.  Adieu.  Hal. 

P.  S. — I  must  not  omit  to  tell  you  that  at  one 
time  during  Sunday  I  was  within  a  few  feet  of  Em- 
press Eugenia.  I  got  a  good  look  at  her,  and  must 
call  her  beautiful.  I  pulled  off  mj''  hat,  and  smiled 
and  bowed  to  her.  She  waved  her  fan  gracefully, 
and  bowed  and  smiled  in  return.  (The  Emperor 
was  not  near  enough  to  observe  us.)  Since  then  I 
have  felt  inclined  to  cut  the  acquaintance  of  my 
American  friends.  Don't  know  what  I  may  do  on 
reflection.  I  dislike  to  do  it,  for  I  have  two  most 
excellent  companions,  John  G.  and  Arthur  R.,  who, 
by  the  way,  are  enjoying  Paris  extensively. 


44  HAL'S    TRAVELS. 


LETTER    V. 

PARIS. 

Paris,  for  beaiit}^  and  magnificence,  surpasses 
any  thing  I  had  dreamed  of.  Its  gay  inhabitants, 
its  beautiful  gardens,  its  magnificent  palaces,  its 
brilliant  cafes,  its  lovely  promenades,  its  cooling 
fountains,  its  galleries  of  paintings  and  statuary,  its 
gorgeous  shops,  its  bustling  boulevards,  and  its 
flashing  quays — all  these  things  I  have  heard  of 
from  my  youth  up,  but  the  half  had  not  been  told 
me.  Nor  is  it  possible  for  me  to  give  you  any  thing 
approaching  a  correct  idea  of  Paris.  To  be  known 
as  it  is,  it  must  be  seen. 

I  have  been  studying  the  French  people  assidu- 
ously for  the  past  three  weeks,  and  have  arrived  at 
a  conclusion !  Yes,  sir — I  have  come  to  a  conclu- 
sion !  You  may  say  this  is  preposterous — absurd — 
ridiculous — for  a  fresh  import  all  the  way  from 
Alabama  (a  region  generally  regarded  by  Europeans 
as  heathendom)  to  form,  and  actually  express  in 
writing,  an  opinion  of  this  highly  enlightened  and 
doubly-refined  people  after  a  study  of  only  three 
weeks !  Call  it  what  you  please.  I  have  formed 
an  opinion,  and  shall  express  it  boldly,  without 
equivocation   or   mental   reservation.      It  is   this: 


HAL'S    TRAVELS.  45 

That  the  French  arc  a  strange  and  unaccountable 
people !  The  more  I  see  of  them,  the  more  I  am 
constrained  to  quote  the  brilliant  exclamation  of 
Hans  Von  Vochensberg,  upon  liis  first  visit  to  Paris : 
"Mine  Got!  vat  a  peoples!"  and  again,  when  he 
saw  a  monkey,  with  eyes  rolled  up  and  hands 
erect  he  exclaimed,  "  Donner  and  blitzen !  vat  vill 
de  Frenchman  make  next?"  These  classic  expres- 
sions pass  through  my  mind  daily  because  of  the 
strange  things  I  see.  If  there  be  any  thing  that  a 
Frenchman  cannot  make  or  imitate,  I  don't  know 
what  it  is.  And  if  they  are  not  a  happy  people, 
appearances  are  deceptive,  for  they  always  seem  so. 
Few  of  them  have  homes.  They  live  in  hired  apart- 
ments, and  take  their  meals  at  restaurants.  It  is 
quite  common  to  see  whole  families  walk  into  a 
restaurant  together,  and  take  dinner.  The  mass 
of  the  people  seem  to  live  out-doors — all  classes. 
The  public  squares,  gardens  and  groves,  are  thronged 
from  morning  till  night.  You  will  see  family  groups 
sitting  in  the  shade  in  those  pleasant  gardens,  chat- 
ting merrily,  and  doing  their  work  as  if  they  were 
at  home.  Fathers  read  the  papers,  mothers  and 
grown-up  daughters  ply  the  needle,  little  girls  skip 
the  rope,  and  little  boys  play  ball  or  fly  kites. 
Belles  promenade,  and  young  "whiskernndoes"  do 
the  agreeable.  To  a  stranger  it  looks  like  a  per- 
petual fete.     Babies  are  never  heard  to  cry  here. 

The  garden  of  the  Tuilcries  is  a  place  of  general 
resort;  is  very  extensive,  and  contains  many  beau- 
tiful fountains,  and  a  great  number  of  statues.     A 


46  II  AL'S    TRAVELS. 

band  of  fifty  instruments  plays  here  almost  every 
evening,  at  government  expense,  for  the  edification 
of  the  people — also  at  many  other  places  of  resort. 
This  is  one  of  the  means  adopted  by  Louis  Na- 
poleon to  render  the  people  content,  and  keep  them 
from  taking  oif  his  head. 

I  have  not  confined  my  observation  alone  to  the 
French  people.  There  are  many  strangers  here — 
many  Americans,  but  more  English.  It  pays  well 
to  note  their  manners.  They  are  a  peculiar  people 
—  the  English  are.  They  delight  in  hating  the 
"frog-heating  basses,"  as  they  call  the  French,  an0. 
suffer  no  opportunity  to  pass  to  speak  disparagingly 
or  contemptuously  of  them.  The  French,  in  turn, 
take  pleasure  in  turning  up  their  noses  at  the  pecu- 
liarities and  bigotry  of  the  John  Bulls.  It  is  amus- 
ing to  hear  the  English  speak  of  the  French  and 
their  institutions.  I  dropped  in  at  the  Grand  Hotel 
du  Louvre  the  other  evening,  and  spent  a  delicious 
half-hour  listening  to  the  conversation  of  a  small 
squad  of  angry  Britons.  One  of  them,  it  seemed, 
had  been  swindled  by  a  coachman  out  of  ever  so 
many  sous ;  was  in  consequence  very  wrathy,  and 
considered  himself  licensed  to  say  just  what  he 
pleased  about  the  entire  French  nation ;  and  all 
he  said  was  endorsed  by  his  companions.  He 
termed  them  a  " 'eathenish,  houtlandish  people; 
hutterly  hignorant  of  the  courtesies  due  a  stranger." 
Believed  they  would,  from  the  Emperor  down, 
"cheat  the  heyes  out  of  a  man  if  they  could." 
Thought  it  strange  they  didn't   "learn  to  speak 


HAL'S    TRAVELS.  47 

Hinglish."  Thought  the  French  hangungc  "'oi-rible 
gibberish."  Met  another  party  in  Bois  de  Bouhigne, 
a  magnificent  woodland  park — the  finest,  perhaps,  in 
the  workL  They  acknowledged  its  beauty,  but  said 
that  "for  a  display  of  tine  hequipages  and  haristo- 
cracy,  it  was  hinferior  to  'yde  Park  in  London." 
Still  another  party,  at  the  Jardin  des  riantes,  con- 
ceded that  it  was  very  extensive  and  beautiful,  but 
then  "the  hanimals  were  hinferior  to  those  in  the 
Zoolo2:ical  Gardens  in  Reo-ent's  Park."  As  to  the 
public  buildings  of  Paris,  they  were  not  to  be  com- 
pared with  St.  Paul's.  Pronounced  the  French 
30oker3'  "'orrid."  From  what  I  have  seen  and 
heard,  I  am  constrained  to  believe  that  the  English 
hate  (not  to  say  fear)  the  French  with  the  hatred 
that  only  the  intensely  jealous  feel.  But  the  French 
turn  up  their  noses,  and  laugh  in  their  sleeves  (they 
are  too  polite  to  laugh  openly)  at  the  growling 
British. 

But  with  all  the  blutY  bluntness  and  dogmatical 
bigotry  of  the  English  people,  and  with  all  their 
scorn  and  jealousy  of  every  thing  not  English,  I 
shall  favor  their  success  (much  as  I  like  the  French) 
whenever  there  is  a  war  between  them  and  their 
Gallic  neighbors — and  that  there  will  be  a  war  be- 
tween them  at  no  distant  day  I  have  no  doubt. 
Such  a  war,  if  declared  to-morrow,  would  be  popu- 
lar on  both  sides  the  Channel.  The  reasons  why  I 
should  favor  England  are  obvious.  She  is  our 
mother.     Her  language  is  the  same,  her  religion  is 


48  HAL'S    TRAVELS. 

the  same,  and  lier  government  nearly  the  same. 
This  is  more  than  we  can  say  of  any  other  country 
upon  earth ;  therefore  my  cry  shall  be,  "  Vioe  VAn- 
gleierrel" 

Many  of  the  streets  of  this  cit}^  are  broad  and 
beautiful.  The  Boulevards,  a  succession  of  wide 
streets,  are  said  to  be  the  finest  in  the  world.  One 
of  them — the  Boulevard  des  Italiens — is  the  chief 
thoroughfare  for  fashion  and  gaycty.  Here  tlie 
Mrs.  Harrises  and  the  Flora  McFlimseys  most  do 
congregate ;  and  here  people  may  be  met  every 
day,  the  worldwide  fame  of  whom  would  render 
them  "lions"  anywhere  but  in  Paris.  Should  one 
of  them  chance  to  visit  the  United  States,  his 
advent  would  be  heralded  by  telegraph,  from  Maine 
to  Texas,  and  the  toadies  of  Kew  York  would  get 
up  a  demonstration. 

A  stranger  in  Paris,  from  a  Christian  country,  is 
almost  forced  to  the  conclusion  that  this  is  a  God- 
despising,  infidel  people.  The  workshops,  liquor- 
shops,  stores,  and  all  other  kinds  of  work  and  play 
go  on  here  on  Sunday  as  on  other  days.  Theatres, 
circuses,  gambling-hells,  and  all  other  places  of 
amusement  and  infamy,  are  open.  The  public 
works  by  the  Government  and  city  are  carried  on. 
In  short,  Sunday  is  little  regarded  by  the  masses. 

But  there  is  some  salt  in  Paris;  some  people 
who  worship  God  in  the  good  old  way.  Found  a 
little  Methodist  chapel,  last  Sunday,  and  heard  an 
old-fashioned  Methodist  sermon.     It  seemed  like 


HAL'S    TRAVELS.  49 

getting  back  home ;  for  both  the  singing  and 
preaching  were  such  as  I  have  often  heard  there. 
The  congregation  was  English. 

Went  to  the  Opera  last  night,  and  witnessed  the 
performance  of  Robert  le  Diable.  I  was  greatly- 
pleased  with  the  music,  which  was  the  finest  I  ever 
heard.  I  never  before  heard  a  hundred  voices  in 
chorus,  accompanied  by  nearly  as  many  instru- 
ments. The  Opera,  like  every  thing  else  in  Paris, 
is  on  a  grand  scale.  They  bore  with  big  augers 
liere,  and  whatever  they  undertake  to  do  they  do 
with  a  vim. 

It  is  raining  here  to-day;  a  thing  much  less 
common  in  Paris  than  in  London.  People,  how- 
ever, don't  seem  to  mind  it.  The  streets  are  pretty 
well  thronged.  Crinoline  is  displayed  liberally ; 
and  ladies'  knees  are  no  secret  in  Paris.  Modesty 
is  a  jewel  here ;  yet  it  is  to  be  found. 

I  have  hardly  3'et  become  reconciled  to  the  hours  of 
serving  meals  here :  coffee  at  eight  or  nine  o'clock, 
breakfast  at  twelve,  and  dinner  at  six.  No  two  arti- 
cles of  food  are  ever  served  on  the  same  plate.  The 
stuff'  the  French  call  bread,  is  a  libel — a  slander 
upon  the  genuine  article ;  almost  tough  enough  to 
draw  teeth  ;  innocent  of  butter,  lard,  or  salt ;  open 
as  honeycomb,  but  with  none  of  its  sweetness,  and 
is  never  used  until  it  is  stale.  It  is  bought  by  the 
yard  or  foot,  to  suit  purchasers.  This  is  no  joke, 
but  a  stubborn  fact.  The  bakers  furnish  it  in  rolls 
from  a  yard  to  a  yard  and  a  half  in  length,  about 


50  HAL's    TRAVELS. 

the  size  of  a  man's  arm.  Go  into  a  restaurant,  and 
you  may  see  these  rolls  stacked  in  one  corner  of  the 
room,  one  end  resting  upon  the  floor,  and  the  other 
against  the  wall. 

Our  party  will  he  divided  in  a  few  days.  John 
and  myself  are  going  into  Germany,  on  the  Rhine, 
to  be  there  during  the  vintage,  or  grape  harvest. 
"We  are  anxious  to  learn  all  we  can  about  the  culti- 
vation of  the  grape,  and  the  modus  operandi  of 
making  wine.  Arthur  and  Camp  Turner  (who,  by 
the  way,  I  had  almost  forgotten  to  tell  you  is  of  our 
party  now — and  a  valuable  accession  too)  will  re- 
main here  and  pursue  their  studies  till  cool  weather, 
when  they  contemplate  uniting  with  us  in  Italy. 

If  I  had  time,  I  would  tell  you  something  about  our 
visit  to  Yersailles,  and  o£  the  ff  teen  miles  of  paintings 
we  saw  there,  representing  all  the  important  battles 
fought  by  the  French  nation  for  fourteen  hundred 
years.  The  palace  covers  twenty  acres  of  ground, 
and  the  forest  belonging  to  it  six  thousand  acres  ! 

The  strong-minded  maiden  lady  —  the  literary 
female  mentioned  in  a  previous  letter — is  here.  She 
is  "doing  up"  Paris  with  a  rush.  She  goes  out  at 
all  hours  of  the  day,  and  in  all  sorts  of  weather.  If 
there  be  any  sights  in  Paris  that  she  don't  find, 
they'll  hardly  be  worth  looking  for.  Being  of  the 
pantaloons  order  of  ladies,  she  goes  it  alone.  I 
love,  honor — yea,  reverence — a  modest,  retiring 
woman ;  but  from  a  he  woman,  good  Lord  deliver 
me ! 


HAL'S    TRAVELS.  51 

We  go  from  here  first  to  Brussels,  where  we  shall 
spend  a  week  or  two  perhaps. 

Yours,  Hal. 

P.  S.— Dr.  Ford,  Miss  Ilohson,  and  Miss  Elliott, 
of  Nashville,  are  spending  a  season  here.  They 
have  just  returned  from  a  tour  through  Switzerland 
and  on   the   Rhine  —  one  of  the  most  iuterestinsr 

o 

tours  that  can  be  made  in  Europe. 


52  HAL'S    TRAVELS. 


LETTER  VI. 

BRUSSELS. 

In  the  beginning  of  this  letter  permit  me  to  make 
a  few  suggestions  for  the  benefit  of  all  Americans 
who  ever  expect  to  travel  on  this  continent.  I 
advise  them,  in  making  their  preparations  to  leave 
home,  to  lay  in  a  good  supply  of  charity,  forbear- 
ance, brotherly  kindness,  and  as  much  patience  as 
they  can  conveniently  carry.  They  will  find  abun- 
dant use  for  all  these  graces  at  every  stage  of  the 
journey — especially  the  latter.  I  thought  I  started 
with  a  pretty  good  supply,  but  it  is  well-nigh  ex- 
hausted. A  few  more  such  attacks  as  I  have  suf- 
fered since  my  arrival  in  the  Belgian  capital,  and  I 
shall  be  "done  for."  Since  my  arrival  here  the 
beggars  have  stuck  to  me  like  the  locusts  to  the 
Egyptians.  The  "commissionaires,"  who  seek  to 
guide  me  over  the  city,  I  have  found  harder  to  shake 
off  than  a  New  York  hack-driver,  or  a  hanger-on 
about  a  Niagara  Falls  hotel.  Thus  far  I  have  kept 
them  at  bay.  I  have  to  use  my  stick  to  keep  off  the 
dirty-faced  beggar  children,  many  of  whom  carry 
disgustingly  besmeared  babies  in  their  arms  to 
excite  compassion.     I  don't  know  which  predomi- 


HAL'S    TRAVELS.  53 

nates  hero,  the  beggars  or  the  black-robed,  broad- 
brimmed  Catholic  clergy.  The  number  of  each  is 
alarminer.  I  am  told  that  their  number  is  corre- 
spoudingly  great  or  small  in  all  Catholic  countries. 
"Where  you  find  one,  the  other  is  sure  to  be.  A 
numerous  armed  police  is  alwaj^s  necessary,  too,  in 
such  countries. 

This  is  the  greatest  city  for  bells  I  have  yet  found. 
A  stranger  is  apt  to  think,  from  the  incessant  ring- 
ing of  ponderous  bells,  that  the  town  is  burning  up. 
Even  now  while  I  w^rite,  between  eight  and  nine 
o'clock  at  night,  the  din  is  distracting.  If  I  make 
any  egregious  blunders  in  this  letter,  you  may  lay 
the  sin  to  the  bells  of  Brussels,  or  to  the  Catholic 
Church. 

Speaking  of  churches,  this  city  is  somewhat 
famous  for  its  ancient  and  costly  edifices.  There 
are  some  here  many  hundreds  of  years  old.  I  have 
visited  some  of  them,  and  found  them  quite  interest- 
ing on  account  of  their  age,  architecture  and  paint- 
ings. The  Church  of  St.  Gudule  is  the  finest 
church  in  the  city,  and  one  of  the  finest  in  Europe. 
It  is  truly  magnificent,  and  I  found  it  interesting  to 
wander  throngh  and  around  it  for  hours.  The 
painting  of  the  windows  is  not  surpassed  anywhere. 
.The  internal  adornments  are  elaborate,  and  quite 
enchanting  to  all  who  admire  sculpture  and  paint- 
ings. In  this  church  are  deposited  what  are  called 
the  miraculous  wafers,  said  to  have  been  stolen  from 
the  altar  at  the  instigation  of  a  sacrilegious  Jew,  and 
subjected  to  the  insults  of  himself  and  brethren  in 


64  HAL'S    TRAVELS. 

their  synagogues.  And  this  outrageous  and  diabo- 
lical act  is  said  to  have  been  committed  on  Good 
Friday^  which  of  course  added  to  the  heinousness 
of  the  sin.  It  is  said  that  wheu  these  Jewish  scof- 
fers stuck  their  knives  in  the  wafers,  jets  of  blood 
burst  forth  from  the  wounds,  and  that,  by  a  second 
miracle,  they  were  struck  senseless.  The  sinful 
Jews  who  had  done  this  were  denounced  by  one 
who  had  been  converted  to  Christianity,  and  were 
seized  and  put  to  death  by  the  most  cruel  treatment, 
having  their  flesh  torn  ofl'by  hot  pincers  before  they 
were  burned  to  death  at  the  stake.  This  is  said  to 
have  taken  place  about  the  end  of  the  fourteenth 
century.  This  "triumph  of  the  faith,"  as  it  is  called 
here,  is  celebrated  once  a  year,  on  the  Sunday  fol- 
lowing the  fifteenth  of  July,  by  a  solemn  procession 
of  the  clergy,  and  an  exhibition  of  the  identical 
wafers.  This  is  Catholicism  in  Belgium.  You 
may  know  by  this  to  what  degree  the  intelligence 
of  the  people  rises.  That  beggars  abound  here  is 
not  to  be  wondered  at. 

But  with  all  its  superstitions  and  gullibility,  I 
must  say  that  Brussels  is  a  beautiful  city.  The  mod- 
ern part  of  the  city  (which  my  friend  Gamble  and 
myself  have  succeeded  in  exploring  without  the  aid 
of  a  commissionaire)  is  decidedly  handsome,  and 
would  not  suffer  much  by  a  comparison  with  Paris. 
Indeed,  Brussels  has  been  called,  and  not  without 
reason,  Paris  on  a  small  scale.  The  streets  are  broad 
and  straight,  while  the  buildings  are  magnificent, 
being  uniformly  four  stories  high,  and  nearly  all 


HAL'S    TRAVELS.  5^ 

of  a  snowy  whiteness — built  of  stone  or  brick,  stuc- 
coed. The  old  part  of  the  city  is  not  so  handsome. 
The  buildings  are  all  line  and  good,  and  the  streets 
are  kept  perfectly  clean,  but  they  are  very  narrow 
most  of  them,  and  run  in  no  particular  direction. 
They  wind  about  every  way,  and  I  tind  it  the  easiest 
thing  in  the  world  to  get  lost  among  them.  It  would 
be  hard  for  a  snake  to  put  itself  into  a  more  awk- 
ward shape  than  the  streets  of  lower  Brussels. 

And,  by  the  way,  speaking  of  these  winding 
streets  reminds  me  of  a  little  incident  I  met  with 
to-day.  I  was  threading  my  way  along  one  of  them, 
and  met  two  well-dressed  ladies,  who  seemed  to  be 
wandering  about  at  random.  They  were  looking  up 
at  signs,  and  showed  plainly  by  their  actions  that  they 
were  strangers  in  the  city.  Being  a  stranger  myself,  I 
sympathetically  halted  near  them,  when  they  ap- 
proached me,  and  one  of  them  asked,  "  Sir,  do  you 
speak  English  ?"  Throwing  myself  back  as  straight 
as  a  policeman,  (for  I  was  glad  to  hear  my  native 
language  spoken  in  this  modern  Babel,)  I  replied, 
"Madam,  I  don't  speak  au}^  thing  else!"  "Then, 
sir,"  said  she,  "will  you  be  so  kind  as  to  tell  us 
where  to  find  a  lace  manufiictory ?"  "Madam," 
said  I,  "I  will  not  tell  you,  but  shoio  you  a  lace  manu- 
factory," which  I  did  in  short  order.  I  found  them 
to  be  a  couple  of  English  ladies  who  had  wandered 
out  from  their  hotel — very  polite,  and  as  thankful 
for  my  assistance  as  it  is  in  the  nature  of  the  Eng- 
lish to  be. 

And  now,  being  at  the  lace  manufiictory,  I  will 


56  HAL'S    TRAVELS. 

tell  you  something  about  it.  The  lace  is  all  made 
by  hand,  uo  machinery  whatever  being  used  in  the 
making  of  the  Brussels  lace.  Some  thread  was 
shown  me,  so  fine,  that  I  was  told  a  pound  of  it  was 
worth  iioelve  hundred  dollars !  and  that  when  manu- 
factured into  lace  the  pound  would  be  worth  nearly 
three  times  that  amount  of  money  !  It  was  almost 
like  a  spider's  web.  The  women  who  make  the  lace 
labor  very  hard,  and  frequently  ruin  their  eyes  while 
they  are  yet  young.  A  lace  handkerchief  worth  ten 
dollars  requires  sixtj'-five  days  labor ;  other  laces 
in  the  same  proportion.  This  city,  as  Americans  all 
know,  is  celebrated  for  its  fine  laces.  Not  only  the 
figures  but  the  groundwork  of  Brussels  laces  are 
made  by  hand.  The  proprietor  of  the  establishment 
made  desperate  efforts  to  sell  me  a  bill  of  laces,  but 
I  resisted  the  temptation  to  buy. 

Went  out  to  Waterloo  yesterday,  and  spent  the 
day  wandering  about  over  the  old  battle-ground. 
Had  Sergeant  Munday  (who  was  in  the  battle  of 
Waterloo)  for  a  guide.  He  is  an  Englishman,  and 
of  course  points  out  all  the  interesting  parts  of  the 
field  with  pride.  E"o  man  who  looks  at  the  ground 
carefully  will  wonder  at  the  defeat  of  the  French. 
The  English  had  great  advantage  in  position.  The 
Duke  of  Wellington  had  reconnoitred  and  chosen 
the  ground  with  a  view  to  draw  !N^apoleon  into  a 
battle  there  twelve  months  before  the  battle  was 
fought.  In  the  midst  of  the  field  a  great  mound  of 
earth  has  been  thrown  up  to  mark  the  spot  where 
the  bones  of  the  thousands  of  friends  and  foes  lie 


HAL'S    TRAVELS.  57 

heaped  together.  The  mound  is  two  hundred  feet 
high,  and  sixteen  hundred  feet  in  circumference  at 
the  base.  It  is  surmounted  by  the  Belgic  lion,  a 
huge  bronze  cast,  which,  with  the  pedestal  it  stands 
upon,  is  forty  feet  high.  This  lion  is  intended  as  a 
memorial  of  the  Prince  of  Orange,  and  to  mark  the 
spot  where  he  was  wounded. 

The  church  and  churchyards  of  "Waterloo  village 
are  crowded  with  memoria,l8  of  English  officers. 
They  contain  about  thirty  tablets  and  monuments 
to  those  who  fell. 

Waterloo  is  twelve  miles  from  Brussels.  "Went 
out  on  a  great  lumbering  stage-coach,  crowded  in- 
side and  out  with  passengers,  all  English,  except  Gr. 
and  mj'self.  Had  the  good  fortune  to  sit  facing  two 
prim  English  spinsters  on  an  outside  seat.  Took 
them  for  sisters  from  the  favor.  Both  had  auburn 
hair — intensely  auburn — in  fact,  some  people  would 
call  it  red ;  thin  lip^;,  and  tiery,  spiteful-looking 
eyes.  It  would  have  required  more  than  an  ordinary 
amount  of  courage  to  have  sought  information  as  to 
the  age  of  either  of  those  damsels.  Held  their 
heads  very  high,  and  sat  straight  as  Indians.  I  tried 
to  draw  one  of  them  into  conversation,  but  could  n't. 
Thought  I  had  succeeded  once,  when  she  ventured 
a  reply  to  a  remark  I  made  about  the  extremely  hard 
features  of  the  Belgian  peasantry.  Said  she  thought 
the  "  Belgian  childring  looked  rather  hinteresting." 
Our  confab  ended  here.  I  amused  myself  with 
drumming  Yankee  Doodle  on  the  footboard,  while 


58  HAL's    TRAVELS. 

sTie  elevated  her  head  two  or  three  degrees  higher, 
and  looked  defiantly  at  her  male  companions. 

Before  getting  off  the  stage  upon  reaching  the 
battle-ground,  we  were  set  upon  by  a  horde  of  relic- 
venders,  who  stuck  to  us  as  tenaciously  as  the  Brus- 
sels beggars.  Every  ragged  urchin  in  the  neigh- 
borhood seemed  to  have  a  pocket  full  of  bullets, 
buttons,  and  other  relics,  said  to  have  been  picked 
up  on  the  battle-field.  Our  guide  told  us  that  he 
was  sure  that  enough  such  relics  had  been  sold  there 
to  supply  a  dozen  such  battles  as  that  of  "Waterloo. 

The  road  between  Brussels  and  "Waterloo  is 
thronged  with  beggars.  It  is  as  amusing  as  it  is 
lamentable  to  see  the  eagerness  with  which  the  chil- 
dren from  five  to  twelve  years  old  run  after  the 
coach.  The  oldest  of  them  will  follow  it  for  miles 
in  a  brisk  trot,  occasionally  turning  summersaults 
to  attract  the  attention  of  passengers.  Others  hump 
themselves,  throw  back  their  heads,  and  with  their 
shaijory  hair  streaming  in  the  wind,  and  their  elbows 
pointing  back  like  the  knees  of  a  grasshopper,  will 
run  for  nearly  an  hour  without  seeming  to  tire, 
never  taking  their  eyes  ofi:'  the  passengers.  If  they 
get  a  copper  or  two,  all  right;  if  not,  they  don't 
seem  disappointed. 

]S"ow  all  these  things — the  manners,  customs,  fol- 
lies, 8uj)erstition8,  etc.,  are  interesting  to  me,  for  my 
object  in  travelling  is  to  see  and  learn.  I  think  I 
am  getting  the  full  value  of  my  time,  trouble,  and 
money.     I  am  learning  what  books  cannot  teach. 


HAL'S    TRAVELS.  59 

Tourists  generally  go  in  one  beaten  track,  and  tlicir 
wake  is  so  broad  that  it  is  difficult  to  steer  clear  of 
it,  but  thus  far  I  have  succeeded  in  doing  so.    Those 
who  write  books  of  travel,  or  for  the^  newspaper 
press,  have  a  peculiarly  easy  way  of  getting  up  their 
letters  and  volumes.     It  is  an  easy  thing  to  write 
either  letters  or  books.     For  instance,  one  of  these 
learned  and  prolific  authors  will  go  to  a  city,  and  as 
soon  as  his  name  is  registered  at  his  hotel,  he  has  a 
"  commissionaire"  engaged,  and  is  on  the  wing  see- 
ing the  lions  of  the  place.     He  runs  from  church  to 
church,  from  gallery  to  gallery,  and  to  all  the  places 
of  interest,  and  thus,  in  a  few  hours,  he  "does"  the 
entire  city.     At  night  he  sits  down,  and,  with  the 
assistance  of  his  guide-book  and  "commissionaire," 
he  compiles  a  huge  amount  of  matter  which  he 
imagines  will  be  read  witli  greediness  by  the  un- 
travellod,   and  consc(iuontly  ignorant  public.      By 
elaborate  plagiarisms  from  his  guide-book,  and  sdme 
marvellous  legends  told  him  by  his   guide,  he   is 
made  to  appear  exceedingly  learned  and  well-read. 
This  mode  of  getting  up  letters  and  books  of  travel 
will  account  for  the  great  similarity  observable  in 
such  productions.     With  a  few  items  gathered  from 
their  guides,  such  writers  not  unfrequently  are  en- 
abled to  enter  into  a  learned  discussion  of  the  poli- 
tics of  the  countries  through  which  they  pass.    They 
find  many  things  to  condemn,  but  rarely  any  thing 
to  commend  in  a  government. 

Now  such  is  the  track  followed  by  most  of  the 
book  and  letter  writers.     I  have  seen  many  of  them 


60  HAL'S     TRAVELS. 

since  my  arrival  in  Europe.  I  met  one  in  Paris 
three  weeks  ago.  He  is  now  here,  having  visited 
more  than  a  dozen  other  cities  since  leaving  Paris. 
He  thinks  he  is  collecting  material  for  a  first-rate 
book.     Bah ! 

N'ow  as  I  am  travelling  for  my  own  edification, 
and  not  to  gather  materials  for  a  book,  I  shall  make 
it  a  point  to  stop  long  enough  in  every  important 
city  I  visit,  to  learn  something  about  it. 

I  have  now  been  in  Brussels  since  Saturday  last, 
(five  days,)  and  the  beauty  of  this  city  has  grown 
upon  me  every  day.  It  is  a  charming  place,  and  if 
the  climate  were  more  temperate,  I  should  be  surely 
tempted  to  remain  here  through  the  winter.  It  is 
the  cheapest  place  to  live  in  I  have  found  in  Europe. 
Every  thing  is  cheap  except  beef  and  mutton. 
Hotel  bills  are  very  moderate.  Dry-goods  of  almost 
every  description  are  astonishingly  low.  Many 
English  families  live  here  on  account  of  the  cheap- 
ness of  living  and  the  advantageous  educational 
facilities,  but  it  is  said  that  their  presence  is  grad- 
uallj^  banishing  the  cheapness  they  seek. 

I  must  acknowledge  my  indebtedness  to  Gen.  E. 
Y.  Fair,  our  Minister  to  Belgium,  for  his  many 
kindnesses;  and  also  to  the  charming  and  highly 
accomplished  Mrs.  Fair,  for  her  amiable  hospitality. 
Alabama  may  well  be  proud  of  the  honor  of  being 
so  well  represented  at  the  court  of  Brussels. 

Farewell. 

Hal. 


n 


HAL'S    TRAVELS.  61 


LETTER   VII. 

BRUSSELS    TO     OSNABRUCK. 

My  last  letter  to  yoii  was  written  from  the  fair 
city  of  Brussels,  which  place  we  left  on  the  10th 
inst,  and  I  will  now  proceed  to  give  you  a  rambling 
account  of  what  I  have  picked  up  along  the  way 
since  that  time. 

Our  first  stopping-place  was  Cologne,  a  city  re- 
nowned both  in  song  and  story  for  many  things — 
its  antiquity,  its  churches,  its  galleries  of  paintings, 
its  antique  curiosities,  its  massive  walls,  its  bridge 
of  boats,  its  castles  and  towers,  its  quaint  old  build- 
-ings,  its  Eau  de  Cologne,  and,  more  than  all,  for  its 
great  Cathedral.  Cologne  is  a  city  in  which  every 
one  must  be  interested,  especially  the  antiquarian 
and  the  architect ;  whilst  those  who  are  willing  to 
be  humbugged  (and  most  people  like  it)  will  find 
many  things  to  rejoice  their  hearts,  for  in  barefaced 
humbugger}'  and  brazen  impudence,  Cologne  bears 
off"  the  palm,  as  will  be  seen  before  the  conclusion 
of  this  letter. 

The  first  great  object  of  attraction  in  Cologne  is 
the  Cathe4ral,  a  great  building,  which  is  visited,  of 
course,  by  every  stranger.     It  is  a  massive  Gothic 


62  HAL's     TRAVELS. 

Structure,  commenced  liuudreds  of  years  ago,  and 
which  is  yet  unfinished ;  and  so  immense  is  the 
work,  that  the  present  generation  will  hardly  see  it 
completed,  although  the  work  is  being  vigorously 
prosecuted.  It  will  be  the  finest,  but  not  the  largest 
church  in  the  world.  It  is  511  feet  long,  231  feet 
wide,  and  will  be  511  feet  high.  To  finish  it,  will 
cost  $5,000,000.  The  choir  is  160  feet  high.  In- 
ternally, the  church  seems  to  be  almost  completed, 
and  from  its  size,  height,  and  disposition  of  pillars, 
arches,  chapels,  and  beautifully  colored  windows, 
resembles  a  splendid  vision.  I  attended  the  cele- 
bration of  high  mass  here  on  Sunday  last. 

This  Cathedral,  like  all  other  Catholic  churches 
in  Europe,  possesses  many  wonderful  curiosities, 
some  of  which  will  challenge  the  credulity  of  the 
most  credulous.  For  instance,  we  are  shown  the 
shrijie  of  the  Three  Kings  of  Cologne,  or  Magi,  who 
came  from  the  East  with  presents  for  the  infant 
Saviour.  The  bones  of  these  wise  men  are  pre- 
served in  a  .  massive  silver  case.  Their  names, 
Gaspar,  Melchoir,  and  Balthazer,  are  inscribed 
upon  their  skulls  in  rubies.  The  bedel  who  ex- 
hibits these  bones  asserts  roundly  that  they  are 
truly  and  positively  the  bones  of  the  Magi,  and  that 
all  others  who  pretend  to  exhibit  them  are  impos- 
tors. There  is  also  exhibited  here  a  bone  of  St. 
Matthew !  But  the  "  trump  card' '  of  the  Cologneans 
is  the  church  of  St.  Ursula,  and  the  curiosities  it 
contains.  Here  the  wonderful  things  of  the  city 
are  exhibited,  and  no  traveller  is  permitted  to  pass 


II  A  L '  S     T  R  A  V  E  L  S .  63 

through  Cologne  without  being  importuned  to  visit 
it.  Here  he  is  shown  the  bones  of  St.  Ursula,  and 
the  skulls  of  the  eleven  thousand  virgins  who  were 
her  companions.  On  entering  the  church,  these 
hideous  relics  meet  the  eye,  beneath,  above,  and 
around  ;  the}^  are  built  into  the  walls,  in  the  ceiling, 
and  displayed  in  glass  cases  in  various  parts.  The 
saint  herself  reposes  in  a  coffin  behind  the  great 
altar,  while  the  skulls  of  a  select  few  of  her  asso- 
ciates are  permitted  to  remain  near  her.  We  are 
told,  with  prodigious  seriousness,  that  this  St.  Ursula 
was  the  daughter  of  an  English  king,  who,  with 
eleven  thousand  virgin  followers,  made  a  pilgrimage 
to  Rome.  On  their  return,  the  whole  party  sutfered 
martyrdom  at  Cologne,  at  the  hands  of  the  barba- 
rian Iluns,  because  the}^  refused  to  break  their  vows 
of  chastity  !  The  skulls  of  the  whole  11,000  have 
been  preserved.  Some  of  them  are  pierced  with 
bullet  holes,  which  causes  some  skeptical  infidels  to 
insinuate  that  they  have  been  picked  up  on  various 
battle-lields.  The  true  believers,  however,  scout 
such  an  idea.  In  this  church  is  also  one  of  the  ves- 
sels in  which  the  water  was  turned  into  wine  at  the 
marriage  in  Cana  of  Galilee.  Now,  all  these  things, 
including  a  piece  of  the  true  cross,  and  one  of  the 
identical  thorns  with  which  our  Saviour  was  crowned, 
are  exhibited  with  imperturbable  gravity,  (not  to  say 
impudence,)  and  the  spectator  besought  to  believe 
that  they  are  truly  what  they  are  represented  to  be. 
To  see  them  costs  money,  of  course,  but  what  seeker 
after  knowledge  would  refuse  to  pay  a  few  francs  to 


64  HAL'S     TRAVELS. 

see  so  many  wonderful  relics  !  The  student  of  hu- 
man nature  is  richly  repaid  for  his  time  and  money, 
in  witnessing  the  coolness  with  which  these  people 
assert  the  genuineness  of  their  relics ;  while  the 
credulous  antiquarian  views  them  with  an  astonish- 
ment only  equalled  by  his  delight.  The  Roman 
Catholics  are  great  judges  of  human  nature.  They 
know  that  the  people  love  to  be  humbugged,  and 
knowing  this,  they  delight  in  humbugging  them. 
They  find  it  a  paying  business.  They  have  learned 
that  the  wise  man  is  as  susceptible  as  the  fool,  and 
will  pay  his  money  for  being  humbugged  with  equal 
liberality.  Barnum,  as  a  Bishop,  would  be  a  jewel 
to  the  Catholic  Church. 

But  aside  from  the  churches  of  Cologne  and  their 
curiosities,  I  viewed  the  city  with  much  interest. 
I  walked  about  the  narrow  streets,  looked  at  the 
moss-covered  walls  and  sharp  antique  gables,  and 
wondered  how  many  centuries  the  storms  had  beat 
upon  them — strolled  upon  the  old  Roman  walls  and 
gazed  at  the  old  towers — sauntered  upon  the  quay 
and  the  bridge  of  boats,  and  looked  with  delight  up 
and  down  the  classic  Rhine,  admiring  the  curiously 
shaped  little  steamers  as  they  scudded  by.  And 
then  the  people  look  so  odd !  The  great  wooden 
shoes,  the  fiarinff  caps,  and  the  short  skirts  of  the 
peasant  women,  were  objects  of  interest.  The 
clumsy  wagons  and  carriages,  the  large  horses  and 
small  donke3^s,  to  say  nothing  of  the  dogs  in  har- 
ness, all  came  in  for  a  share  of  admiration. 

From  what  I  saw  while  there,  I  would  say  that 


iial'stravels.  65 

the  ladies  of  Cologne  were  fond  of  being  seen. 
Large  numbers  were  on  the  streets  at  all  times. 
Now  in  some  portions  of  our  country,  ladies'  feet 
are  little  more  than  traditionary  leg-ends,  but  not  so 
with  the  Prussian  ladies.  Their  feet  are  palpable 
facts,  not  sought  to  be  concealed,  but  displayed  with 
much  boldness.  Nor  are  they  wanting  in  size.  A 
visitor  at  Cologne  will  be  struck  with  these  facts. 

I  would  write  a  paragraph  about  the  filthiness  of 
the  streets  and  alleys  of  Cologne,  if  I  could  do  so 
without  following  in  the  footsteps  of  other  WTiters ; 
but  as  everybody  who  writes  at  all  about  this  city 
gives  them  a  benefit,  I  shall  pass  them  by.  Much 
ink  has  been  shed  and  many  hard  things  said  about 
these  streets,  and  some  have  been  so  uncharitable 
as  to  even  abuse  them  in  poetrj',  which  is  terrible, 
you  know.  Now  I  remember  to  have  read  once  a 
verse  or  two,  by  some  heartless  individual,  running 
somewhat  thus : 

"In  Col'n,  that  town  of  monks  and  bones, 
And  pavements  fanged  with  murderous  stones, 
And  hags  and  rags  and  hideous  wenches, 
I  counted  two-and-sevcnty  stenches, 
All  well-defined  and  genuine  stinks! 

The  river  Rhine,  it  is  well  known, 
Doth  wash  the  city  of  Cologne  ; 
But  tell  me,  0  yc  powers  divine  ! 
What  e'er  can  wash  that  river  Rhine  ?" 

It  was  confidently  predicted  by  the  people  of 
Cologne,  that  the  writer  of  the  above  wicked  lines 
would  come  to  no  good  end,  which  proved  true ;  for 


66  hal'stravels. 

not  many  years  after,  he  was  suffocated  by  tlie 
stench,  in  one  of  the  alleys  of  that  city.  Verdict  of 
the  jury  of  inquest,  "Served  him  right." 

Eau  de  Cologne,  so  renowned  all  over  the  world, 
is  pleaded  as  an  offset  to  the  two-and-seventy 
stenches  observable  in  the  city.  It  is  an  article  of 
considerable  commerce.  There  are  upwards  of  sixty 
manufacturers  of  the  article,  and,  strange  to  say, 
more  than  half  of  them  bear  the  name  of  Farina,  all 
claiming  to  be  descendants  of  the  original  inventor 
of  the  perfume,  whose  name  was  Farina.  He  lived 
in  1670.  Jean  Maria  Farina  is  said  to  be  the  right- 
ful heir.  Don't  know  how  many  of  them  bear  the 
name  of  Jean  Maria. 

But  let  us  leave  the  perfumed  city  of  Cologne,  and 
sa}'  a  word  about  Osnabriick — a  city  of  smaller  size, 
less  note,  and  less  odoriferous,  but  one  which  has  a 
name  and  a  place  in  history,  and  is  withal  no  mean 
city.  Osnabriick  contains  about  15,000  inhabitants, 
and  is  one  of  the  oldest  cities  I  have  seen.  It  is,  I 
believe,  the  capital  of  a  province  of  the  kingdom  of 
Hanover — is  a  walled  city,  situated  very  prettily  in 
a  level  plain,  surrounded  on  nearly  all  sides  by  high- 
lands, which  present  a  picturesque  appearance. 
Friend  G.  and  myself  have  been  here  several  days, 
enjo3ang  ourselves  extensively,  having  been  kindly 
and  hospitably  entertained  in  the  families  of  Mr.  L. 
and  Mrs.  H.  We  shall  remember  Osnabriick  and 
some  of  its  good  citizens  for  many  days.  Mr.  L. 
and  young  Mr.  H.  have  kindly  showed  us  all  the 
notable  buildings,  and  other  things  of  interest,  in- 


hal'stravbls.  67 

eluding  the  cliurclies,  City  Hall,  and  some  very  fine 
Coffee  Houses  and  Gardens  in  the  suburbs.  The 
Cathedral  and  St.  Maria's  (Lutheran)  are  the  finest 
churches  in  the  city.  The  City  Ilall  is  a  castellated 
building,  in  which  the  negotiations  for  the  peace  of 
Westphalia  were  conducted.  It  contains  a  curious 
collection  of  very  old  plate.  In  the  open  space  op- 
posite this  Hall  stands  a  bronze  statue  of  Justus 
Moser.  An  evening  or  two  ago,  in  company  with 
the  intelligent  Mrs.  H.  and  her  accomplished 
daughters,  we  drove  out  to  the  ancient  village  of 
Iburg,  and  viewed  the  venerable  castle  and  palace 
from  which  the  village  takes  its  name.  The  scenery 
about  Iburg  cannot  be  sketched  by  any  thing  short 
of  a  master's  pencil ;  it  would  therefore  be  bad  taste 
in  me  to  attempt  it.  I  would,  however,  say  to  all 
travellers  who  pass  through  Hanover,  to  visit  Iburg, 
and  view  the  surrounding  panorama  from  the 
heights  of  the  Groat  Timpen.  I  would  also  recom- 
mend a  visit  to  Schwitzenhotf,  a  beautiful  place  of 
general  resort  and  recreation  for  all  the  good  people 
of  Osnabriick.     Also  "Little  Switzerland." 

Taking  the  people  of  Osnabriick  for  a  sample,  I 
must  say  that  I  am  much  pleased  with  the  Germans. 
I  find  them,  so  far  as  my  acquaintance  extends,  in- 
telligent, educated,  and  refined,  and  also  very  hospi- 
table. Their  great  number  of  places  of  public  resort 
and  amusement,  shows  them  to  be  a  very  lively,  fun- 
loving  people ;  philosophers  who  believe  in  enjoying 
time  as  it  passes.  This  is  all  right.  I  sliould  like 
them  more,  however,  if  it  were  not  for  their  national 


68  HAL'S     TRAVELS. 

and  individual  disregard  of  the  Sabbath.     They  do 
not  seem  to  have  learned  all  the  Commandments. 

We  shall  start  to-morrow  for  Coblenz  on  the 
Rhine,  and  shall  probably  make  a  little  trip  from 
there  up  the  Moselle  river,  on  which  is  said  to  be 
some  of  the  finest  scenery  in  Europe,  and  where  the 
grape  is  grown  to  great  perfection.  Moselle  wines 
are  celebrated  and  quite  popular.  From  there  we 
will  wander  on  up  the  Rhine  at  leisure.  We  wish 
to  see  the  country  as  it  is,  and  shall  therefore  take 
our  time.  It  is  the  object  of  travellers  generally  to 
travel  over  as  much  territory  as  they  can  in  as  short 
a  space  as  possible.  But  we  are  content  to  see  less 
and  learn  more.  Adieu. 

Hal. 


n  A  L'S    TRAVELS.  Ct) 


LETTER  VIII. 

ON    THE    RHINE. 

When  Beavers  was  a  candidate  for  Congress,  in 
1857,  he  opened  the  canvass  with  a  history  of  the 
Democratic  party,  which  he  continued  from  day  to 
day,  at  his  different  appointments,  until  he  finished 
it,  beginning  each  day  at  the  place  he  left  ofl:'  the  daj' 
before  ;  thus  giving  to  each  audience  its  portion,  not, 
however,  in  due  season.  I  shall  adopt  Beaver's  plan  in 
this  letter,  and  begin  where  I  left  off  in  my  last.  That 
was  dated  Osnabriick,  and  it  is  but  proper  that  you 
should  know  my  wanderings  since  leaving  that  city. 
"Well,  I  left  there  about  a  week  ago,  and  have  since 
that  time  been  lingering  among  and  drinking  in 
the  beauties  of  the  Rhine,  gliding  upon  its  peaceful 
bosom,  climbing  the  lofty  peaks  along  its  margin, 
exploring  the  feudal  castles  and  ruined  towers 
which  crown  their  craggy  heights ;  in  short,  I  have 
been  bathing  and  basking  amid  those  classic  scenes 
that  have  been  intermingled  with  my  day-dreams 
from  early  boyhood.  The  first  grand  scenery  of 
the  Rhine  begins  with  the  "  Seven  Mountains,"  not 
far  above  the  city  of  Bonn.  At  Cologne  we  bought 
.tickets  and  embarked  on  a  steamer  for  Coblenz ; 


70  IIAL'S    TRAVELS. 

but  finding  that  it  would  be  downright  stupidity  to 
rush  by  so  much  beautiful  scenery  at  steamboat 
speed,  we  debarked  at  Konigswinter,  a  town  just 
opposite  the  tallest  of  the  "  Seven  Mountains,"  and 
have  since  that  time  been  wandering  from  place  to 
place  on  foot,  which  is  the  only  way  the  Rhine  and 
its  neighborhood  can  be  properly  seen.  He  who 
travels  up  or  down  this  glorious  river  by  steamer, 
never  stopping,  and  then  boasts  of  having  seen  its 
beauties,  is  a  deceived  individual. 

At  Eonigswinter  we  were  met  by  a  swarm  of 
commissioners  or  guides,  each  of  whom  professed 
to  know  every  inch  of  ground  and  every  stone 
upon  the  Seven  Mountains.  We  succeeded,  after  a 
struggle,  in  fighting  our  way  through  them  just  in 
time  to  be  set  upon  by  a  horde  of  muleteers,  who 
wanted  us  to  ride  up  the  mountain  upon  diminu- 
tive donkeys,  no  larger  than  billygoats.  We 
resisted  the  temptation  to  ride,  notwithstanding 
the  red  saddles,  and,  with  our  staves  in  our  hands, 
started  up  on  foot.  It  looked  like  a  perilous  under- 
taking to  reach  the  pinnacle  of  the  Drachenfels, 
(Dragon  Rock,)  on  the  top  of  which  stands,  or 
rather  seems  to  hang,  a  noble  old  ruin.  We  reached 
it,  however,  and  the  view  amply  repaid  the  toil. 
This  rock  and  ruin  has  been  rendered  more  interest- 
ing by  the  verses  of  Byron  : 

"  The  castled  crag  of  Drachenfels 

Frowns  o'er  the  wide  and  winding  Rhine ; 
Whose  breast  of  waters  broadly  swells 
Between  the  banks  which  bear  the  vine ; 


hal's  travels.  71 

And  hills  all  rich  with  blossomed  trees, 
And  fields  which  promise  corn  and  wine  ; 

And  scattered  cities  crowning  these, 

Whose  far  white  walls  along  them  shine, 

Have  strewed  a  scene  which  I  should  see 

With  double  joy,  wcrt  thou  with  me. 

"And  peasant  girls,  with  deep  blue  eyes, 

And  hands  which  offer  early  flowers, 
Walk  smiling  o'er  this  Paradise. 

Above,  the  frequent  feudal  towers 
Through  green  leaves  lift  their  walls  of  gray; 

And  many  a  rock  which  steeply  towers, 
And  noble  arch,  in  proud  decay, 

Look  o'er  this  vale  of  vintage  bowers. 
But  one  thing  want  these  banks  of  Rhine — 
Thy  gentle  hand  to  clasp  in  mine  ! 

"  The  river  nobly  foams  and  flows  ; 

The  charms  of  this  enchanted  ground, 
And  all  its  thousand  turns,  disclose 

Some  fresher  beauty  varying  round. 
The  haughtiest  breast  its  wish  might  bound 

Through  life  to  dwell  delighted  here: 
Nor  could  on  earth  a  spot  be  found 

To  nature  and  to  me  so  dear. 
Could  thy  dear  eyes,  in  following  mine. 
Still  sweeten  more  these  banks  of  Rhine." 

^  From  the  heights  of  Dracheufcls  I  counted  twelve 
cities  and  towns  in  plain  view,  besides  a  number  of 
ruined  castles  on  other  points  along  the  river. 

We  descended  about  sundown,  and  slept  at  our 
inn  at  Konigswinter.  In  the  morning  we  shouldered 
our  carpet-bags,  crossed  the  river,"  and  took  our 
way  along  the  high  road  towards  the  village  of 
Rolandseck,  above  which,  on   the  heights,  stands 


72  HAL'S    TRAVELS. 

the  ruin  of  the  ancient  baronial  fortress  and  tower 
of  Eolaudseck.  There  is  a  little  romantic  story 
connected  with  this  ruin.  It  receives  its  name  from 
a  tradition  that  the  famous  Roland,  nephew  of 
Charlemagne,  chose  this  spot  because  it  commanded 
a  view  of  the  convent  of  Nonnenworth,  (which  con- 
vent still  stands  on  an  island  in  the  river,  just  oppo- 
site,) within  whose  walls  his  betrothed  bride  had 
taken  the  vail,  upon  hearing  a  false  report  of  his 
having  fallen  in  battle.  He  lived  here  a  lonely 
hermit  for  many  years,  which  has  furnished  the 
subject  of  one  of  Schiller's  most  beautiful  ballads, 
"The  Knight  of  Toggenburg."  The  scene,  how- 
ever, has  been  transferred  b}''  Schiller  from  the 
Khine  to  Switzerland.     So  says  Murray. 

After  climbing  to  this  height,  and  viewing  the 
grand  scenery  from  many  points,  we  again  de- 
scended, and  took  the  highway  for  the  town  of 
Ramagen,  in  the  course  of  which  we  met  with  an 
adventure  not  to  be  forgotten.  (I  had  forgotten  to 
mention  that  there  are  now  three  in  our  party, 
instead  of  but  two,  young  Mr.  HoUenberg  having 
accompanied  us  from  Osuabrlick.  He  speaks  both 
German  and  English,  and  is  quite  an  agreeable 
travelling  companion.)  The  road  runs  immediately 
through  vineyards  nearly  the  whole  way.  The 
vines  bend  beneath  the  weight  of  a  heavy  crop, 
and,  as  there  are  no  fences  in  this  country,  the 
luscious  clusters  hang  temptingly  over  the  road. 
We  hailed  this  sight  with  a  gladness  similar  to  that 
of  the  spies  who  entered  the  promised  land.     See- 


HAL'S    TRAVELS.  78 

ing  SO  many  hundreds  of  acres  of  the  blusliing 
fruit,  and  deeming  it  nothing  amiss,  we,  with  that 
innocence  peculiar  to  ignorance,  began  to  pluck 
and  eat.  A  long,  gangling,  blue-shirted  fellow, 
standing  in  the  road  some  hundred  3'ards  ahead  of 
us,  raised  his  long  bony  arm  ominously,  and  uttered 
a  horrible  sentence,  in  which  our  friend  H.  detected 
the  word  "police."  He  then  called  some  half 
dozen  laborers,  near  by,  and  with  them  started  for 
the  village  of  Oberwinter,  (I  shall  always  remember 
the  name,)  lying  just  ahead  of  us.  We  followed 
on  very  slowly,  feeling  assured  that  something  was 
going  to  happen.  When  we  entered  the  village  we 
saw  heads  projected  from  every  window,  and  know- 
ing winks  and  nods  were  passed  from  neighbor  to 
neiijhbor  as  we  threaded  the  narrow  streets.  Youns: 
women  laughed  at  us,  and  the  old  women  looked  at 
us  with  a  sort  of  pitying  expression,  while  the 
crowd  of  boys  trudging  at  our  heels  momentarily 
swelled  and  grew  larger.  It  was  evident  that  every- 
body in  Oberwinter  knew  that  we  were  in  a  scrape. 
Even  the  dogs  barked  at  us.  At  the  far  end  of  the 
village  we  saw  a  crowd  collected,  in  the  midst  of 
which  stood  the  blue-shirted  individual,  with  his 
arms  going  like  winding-blades.  Ilis  gestures  in- 
dicated that  we  were  the  subject  of  his  discourse. 
We  trudged  on,  and,  upon  reaching  the  crowd, 
were  surrounded  by  the  rabble,  and  informed  that 
we  must  go  before  the  burgomaster  of  the  town,  to 
answer  to  the  charge  of  stealing  grapes.  The 
tongue  of  the  informant  was   eroinc:   like   a  bell- 


74  hal'stravels. 

clapper,  and  the  witnesses  who  had  accompanied 
him  were  scarcely  less  noisy.  The  burgomaster 
was  present,  and,  in  a  very  loud  tone,  gave  us  to 
understand  that  we  had  committed  a  very  grave 
ofteuce ;  that  he  was  a  man  of  great  authority,  and 
that  we  should  feel  the  weight  of  his  power.  We 
followed  him  into  his  filthy  office — a  small  room 
redolent  of  lager-beer  and  tobacco  smoke.  lie 
opened  a  ponderous  book,  and  proceeded  to  read 
the  law,  which  was  all  "Dutch"  to  us.  Then,  with 
his  rusty  spectacles  thrown  back,  he  proceeded  to 
deliver  a  loud  harangue,  while  his  arms  swayed  to 
and  fro  like  the  sails  of  a  wii^d-mill.  Told  us  we 
must  go  to  prison ;  to  which  we  dissented  most 
emphatically ;  and  my  friend  John  was  about  be- 
ginning to  give  the  old  skunk  a  lesson  in  civility 
with  the  butt  end  of  his  cane,  and  I  felt  inclined  to 
give  the  leading  w^itness  a  similar  lesson,  when 
friend  liollenberg  quieted  the  clamor  by  producing 
his  purse,  and  asking  how  much  money  it  would 
take  to  get  us  ofl:*.  The  eyes  of  the  belligerent 
magistrate  brightened,  and  smiles  took  the  place 
of  frowns.  But  for  all  his  smiles,  John  thought  a 
cudgelling  due  him,  which  he  would  have  pro- 
ceeded to  administer,  had  I  not  persuaded  him  that 
discretion  was  the  better  part  of  valor ;  which  to 
me  was  evident,  when  I  looked  at  the  crowd 
of  big,  greasy,  bloused  Prussians  standing  round. 
The  burgomaster  told  us  if  we  would  pay  a  good 
round  sum  of  money,  (which  amount  would  go  for 
the  benefit  of  the  poor,)  we  should  be  released.     I 


hal's   travels.  75 

supposed  we  should  have  to  pay  ten  or  fifteen 
dollars  apiece,  and  was  prepared  to  disburse  to  that 
extent ;  but  Ilollenbcrg  knew  his  countrymen  better 
than  I  did,  and  oflcrcd  him  half  a  thaler,  (about 
thirty-seven  and  a  half  cents;)  which  he  disdain- 
fully refused.  He  then  offered  him  a  thaler,  and 
told  him  we  would  give  no  more.  lie  took  it,  and 
we  shook  the  dust  from  our  feet,  and  departed.  As 
we  left  the  office,  a  friend  said  to  us,  (I  know  he 
was  a  friend,  from  a  remark  he  made,)  "  Go,  gen- 
tlemen, and  sin  no  more."'  This  was  the  interpre- 
tation given  to  the  remark  by  II.  I  have  made  up 
my  mind  as  to  one  thing :  if  ever  I  catch  that  bur- 
gomaster, or  either  of  the  half  dozen  bloused  wit- 
nesses, in  the  streets  of  Huntsville,  I'll — I'll — but 
there's  no  use  sa^^ing  what  I'll  do,  for  it  is  danger- 
ous to  make  threats  ;  but  I'll  make  them  sorry  they 
ever  saw  a  bunch  of  grapes. 

Leaving  Oberwinter,  we  soon  reached  the  town  of 
Ramagen,  an  old  town  in  which  are  traces  of  Ro- 
man architecture,  dating  back  to  the  year  375.  Re- 
mained at  Ramagcn  all  night,  and  the  next  day 
made  an  excursion  up  the  winding  valley  of  Ayr, 
down  which  the  crystal  waters  of  the  little  river  Ayr 
flow  beautifully.  The  scenery  up  this  valley  is  pic- 
turesque beyond  description.  "We  ascended  about 
fourteen  miles  to  the  towns  of  Ahrweiler  and  Alte- 
nah.  Near  the  latter  place  is  a  very  high  peak  of 
the  mountain,  on  the  top  of  which  stands  a  majestic 
old  ruin,  the  history  of  which  I  could  not  learn,  ex- 
cept that  it  was  built  by  a  robber  chief  many  hun- 


76  HAL'ST  RAVELS. 

dred  years  ago.  While  standing  upon  the  tallest 
pinnacle,  a  gust  of  wind  took  my  hat  oft',  and  I  have 
not  seen  it  since.  Not  wishing  to  return  to  Eama- 
gen  bareheaded,  I  took  a  large  comforter  which  re- 
sembled two  or  three  yards  of  fancy  carpeting,  and 
wound  it  around  my  head,  a  la  Turk.  I  was  the 
admiration  of  the  rustics  all  along  the  road  to  Rama- 
gen,  and  in  the  village  of  Ahrweiler  nearly  the  whole 
town  gathered  to  see  me,  and  a  crowd  of  little  boys 
followed  me  for  some  distance  beyond  the  wall. 
Some  said  "  Turko,"  and  others  said  "Zouave."  I 
enjoyed  the  fun  very  much. 

After  returning  from  the  Ayr  (or  Ahr)  valley, 
which,  by  the  way,  is  world-renowned  for  its  vine- 
yards, we  took  boat  and  proceeded  up  to  Brohl, 
(one  or  two  hours'  run,)  from  which  point  we  walked 
to  Laacher  Sea,  where  we  now  are.  This  is  a  very 
singular  lake,  nearly  circular  in  form,  supposed  to 
occupy  the. crater  of  an  extinct  volcano,  is  about 
two  miles  long,  and  one  and  a  half  miles  wide,  and 
very  deep.  The  appearance  of  a  deep  blue  lake 
hemmed  in  on  all  sides  hy  a  ridge  of  hills  completely 
covered  with  luxuriant  wood  down  to  the  water's 
edge  is  exceedingly  beautifal,  as  well  as  singular. 
At  one  end  of  this  lake,  embowered  in  a  forest  of 
large  trees,  rises  a  grand  old  Abbey,  with  five  im- 
mense towers,  built  about  seven  hundred  years  ago. 
The  Abbey,  with  the  many  buildings  attached  to  it, 
is  enclosed  with  a  massive  stone  wall.  This  is  not 
used  for  church  purposes  now,  but  is  private  pro- 
perty ;  and  many  of  the  halls  once  occupied  by  nuns 


II  AL'S    TRAVELS.  77 

and  monks  are  now  used  for  granaries  and  cow- 
stalls.  One  of  the  buildings  is  an  inn,  in  which  I 
now  write. 

I  must  now  go  to  bed,  for  John  and  Benno  have 
been  snoring  this  hour.     Yours,  etc., 

Hal. 

P.  S. — We  have  passed  through  many  vineyards 
since  our  interview  with  the  burgomaster  of  Ober- 
winter,  but  thinking  the  grapes  "  sour,"  we  troubled 
them  not. 


78  hal's  travels. 


LETTEE   IX. 


RHINE    TO     GENEVA, 


While  "taking  mine  ease  at  mine  inn,"  and 
smoking  my  fair  long  pipe,  I  will  scribble  yon  a  few 
items  picked  up  along  the  way  since  my  last  letter. 

By  glancing  at  the  map,  yon  will  see  that  I  am 
many  hundreds  of  miles  away  from  the  place  from 
which  I  last  addressed  you.  I  was  then  lolling  upon 
the  fair  shores  of  the  pretty  little  Laachar  Sea,  away 
up  in  Prussia.  Since  then  I  have  visited  many 
places.  Have  wandered  upon  the  "banks  of  the 
blue  Moselle;"  clambered  among  the  ruins  of  the 
old  "Mouse  Castle;"  stood  upon  the  heights  of  the 
great  Neiderwald ;  have  tarried  at  "  Bingcn  on  the 
Ehine;"  have  roved  through  the  celebrated  vine- 
yards of  Johannisberg ;  groped  through  the  world- 
renowned  wine-cellars  of  Eudesheim ;  lingered  in 
the  groves  and  around  the  hot  springs-of  Ems  and 
Weisbaden ;  strolled  through  the  streets  and  gardens 
of  the  beautiful  city  of  Frankfort-on-the-Main ; 
have  struggled  up  the  high  mountains  and  gazed 
upon  the  ruined  castles  of  Heidelberg ;  have  looked 
and  wondered  at  the  great  tower  of  the  Strasburg 
Cathedral ;  have  traversed  the  romantic  hills  and 
valleys  of  Switzerland;  stood  upon  "the  margin  of 


ual'stravels.  79 

fair  Zurich's  waters;"  walked  beneath  the  dark 
shadows  of  the  Jura  Mountains,  and  gazed  with  awe 
at  the  snow-crowned,  cloud-capped  peaks  of  the 
terrible  Alps ;  have  sailed  upon  the  limpid  waters 
of  the  lakes  of  Bienne,  Neufchatel,  and  Geneva ; 
have  been  charmed  with  the  beauties  of  the  "ar- 
rowy Rhone,"  and  now  iind  myself  quietly  nestled 
down  in  the  quiet  city  of  Geneva,  long  noted  for 
its  beauty,  the  taste  of  its  people,  and  as  the  place 
where  they  make  watches.  Geneva  is  one  of  the 
most  beautiful  cities  I  have  seen,  situated  at  the 
west  end  of  the  lake  of  the  same  name — a  noble 
sheet  of  water  which  no  European  traveller  fails  to 
see,  and  which  has  been  rendered  classic  by  the  his- 
torian, the  romance  writer,  and  the  poet.  It  seems 
that  the  beauties  of  this  lake  well-nigh  niade  a  vir- 
tuous man  of  Lord  Byron,  judging  by  the  following 
lines  penned  by  that  illustrious  poet : 

"Clear,  placid  Lenian  !  thy  contrasted  lake, 
With  the  wild  world  I  dwelt  in,  is  a  thing 
Which  warns  me,  with  its  stillness,  to  forsake 
Earth's  troubled  waters  for  a  purer  spring. 
This  quiet  sail  is  as  a  noiseless  wing 
To  waft  me  from  distraction ;  once  I  loved 
Torn  ocean's  roar,  but  thy  soft  murmuring 
Sounds  sweet,  as  if  a  sister's  voice  i-eproved, 
That  I  with  stern  delights  should  e'er  have  been  so  moved." 

Thus  was  the  great  poet  moved  to  write  upon 
viewing  this  lake  when  calm  and  peaceful.  Later 
he  was  nigh  being  lost  in  a  storm,  while  making  an 
excursion  on  the  lake,  when  he  wrote  as  follows: 


80  HAL'S    TRAVELS. 

"  The  sky  is  changed !  and  such  a  change  !     0  night, 
And  storm,  and  darkness,  ye  ai'e  wondrous  strong. 
Yet  lovely  in  your  strength  as  is  the  light 
Of  a  dark  eye  in  •woman !     Far  along. 
From  peak  to  peak,  the  rattling  crags  among. 
Leaps  the  live  thunder !     Not  from  one  lone  cloud, 
But  every  mountain  now  hath  found  a  tongue, 
^      And  Jura  answers  through  her  misty  shroud. 
Back  to  the  joyous  Alps  who  call  to  her  aloud! 

How  the  lit  lake  shines,  a  phosphoric  sea, 

And  the  big  rain  comes  dancing  to  the  earth ! 

And  now  again  'tis  black — and  now  the  glee 

Of  the  loud  hills  shakes  with  its  mountain-mirth, 

As  if  they  did  rejoice  o'er  a  young  earthquake's  birth." 

I  have  been  now  two  days  in  Geneva,  charmed 
and  delighted  with  the  rugged  scenery  which  pre- 
sents itself  on  every  hand.  The  black,  steep  Jura 
mountains  stretch  themselves  all  along  the  northern 
f,hore  of  the  lake.  To  the  south  rise  the  noble  Alps, 
and  away  in  the  distance  is  seen  the  gigantic  Mont 
Elauc,  with  its  snow  and  glaciers  glistening  in  the 
sun.  I  shall  not  be  content  until  I  have  a  nearer 
view  of  this  giant  of  mountains. 

If  I  had  not  begun  this  with  a  determination  to 
write  a  very  short  letter,  I  would  tell  you  a  great 
deal  about  what  I  have  seen  within  the  last  week  or 
two,  but  as  I  don't  wish  to  bore  you  or  your  readers 
very  deep,  I  will  refrain ;  for  it  would  be  as  a  thrice- 
told  tale,  as  every  nincompoop  who  travels  over  the 
route,  if  he  can  write  at  all,  must  needs  attempt  a 
description.  I  refer  you  to  various  books  of  travel, 
where  you  will  find  all  that  I  could  say. 


HAL'S    TRAVELS.  81 

I  have  been  much  interested  in  the  vintage,  and 
have  learned  what  I  conkl  about  the  process  of  cul- 
tivating the  grape  and  making  wine.  It  is  interest- 
ing to  see  the  Swiss  peasantry'  gathering  the  grapes. 
They  make  a  frolic  of  it,  and  sing  with  great  glee 
as  they  perform  their  labor.  They  are  hard-looking 
creatures,  both  male  and  female,  the  latter  coarse  to 
an  astonishing  degree.  It  is  romantic  to  talk  and 
write  about  the  hardy  and  frugal  Swiss  peasantry, 
and  to  see  them  at  a  distance  is  very  well ;  but  wdieu 
you  come  in  contact  with  them,  the  poetry  vanishes. 
I  have  not  yet  seen  a  handsome  or  even  passable 
face  among  the  female  peasants — though  it  is  said 
they  are  virtuous  and  happy.  I  doubt  not  there 
is  rustic  virtue  among  them — a  vast  deal  of  it — l)ut 
they  are  certainly  a  most  filthy  people.  They  labor 
in  the  fields  much  harder  than  the  negroes  of  the 
South,  and  every  woman  among  them  can  carry  a 
load  upon  her  head  that  would  make  an  ordinary 
mule  stagger.  They  live  like  hogs — men,  women, 
children,  horses,  cow's  and  goats,  all  under  the  same 
roof 

But  I  must  close  this  brief  scroll.  John,  who  has 
just  come  in,  (he  has  been  out  to  buy  us  some  to- 
bacco,) says  it  is  time  to  go  to  bed.  We  start  for 
Italy  to-morrow.  Shall  cross  the  Alps  by  way  of 
the  Simplon  Pass.  Shall  have  plenty  of  company. 
The  flat-bosomed  lady,  w^ho  is  gathering  notes  for  a 
book,  will  probably  be  in  the  party — also  the  bandy- 
legged gentleman  who  w^ears  gold  spectacles,  of 
wdiom  I  intended  to  tell  you,  but  sha'n't  do  it  now. 


82  HAL'S    TRAVELS. 

Friend  Robinson  has  declined  going  to  Italy,  pre- 
ferring to  return  home,  and  will  probably  go  by  the 
steamer  that  carries  this  letter,  or  soon  after.  He 
says  he  is  tired  of  Europe.  I  regret  his  determina- 
tion much,  for  he  is  a  noble  travelling  companion, 
and  I  had  hoped  to  spend  the  winter  with  him  be- 
neath the  "fair  Italian  skies."  Had  also  hoped  to 
have  friend  Turner  with  us,  (who  is  as  clever  as 
boys  ever  get  to  be,)  but  fear  we  shall  not.  Don't 
know  what  his  plans  are.     He  is  in  Paris. 

Farewell.  Hal. 


UAL'S    TRAVELS.  83 


LETTER   X. 

GENEVA     TO     MILAN. 

I  AM  at  length  in  Italy — fair,  bright,  beautiful, 
sunny  Italy  ! — the  laud  of  poctrj^  and  popery — of 
souo;  and  sausao:es  —  music  and  maccaroni  —  of 
orange-groves  and  organ-grinders  —  of  roses  and 
ro2:ues — of  soldiers  and  sardines — of  minstrels  and 
monkeys — of  fat,  round-bellied  priests,  and  lean, 
gaunt,  starving  beggars — in  short,  the  land  Avhere 
pleasure  and  misery  jostle  each  other  in  the  streets, 
and  often  go  hand  in  hand.  Such  is  Ital^^,  and 
such  are  the  strange  blending  of  things  here.  The 
Italian  towns  are  all  strangely  marked ;  houses  with 
colonnades,  streets  with  awnings,  shops  teeming 
with  sausages,  maccaroni  and  garlic ;  lazy-looking, 
loitering  lazzaroni,  in  red  nightcaps,  and  bare  maho- 
gany-colored legs,  intermixed  with  mules,  burly 
priests,  organ-grinders,  and  females  veiled  with  the 
black  mantilla  :  these  things  fill  up  the  picture  of 
an  Italian  town,  poets  and  romance-writers  to  the 
contrary  notwithstanding. 

But  Milan  is  a  tine  city,  and,  to  say  nothing  of  its 
people  and  their  habits,  is  a  city  that  any  country 
might  be  proud  of.     I  have  been  on  the  pad  all  day, 


84  HAL'S    TRAVELS. 

seeing  its  beauties  and  lions.  The  first  place  of  in- 
terest, and  which  has  been  termed,  not  inappropri- 
ately, perhaps,  the  eighth  wonder  of  the  world,  ia 
the  great  Cathedral,  the  finest  building,  no  doubt, 
in  the  world,  but  not  so  large  as  St.  Peter's  at  Rome 
or  St.  Paul's,  London.  It  is  built  of  pure  white 
marble,  is  four  hundred  and  ninety-one  feet  long, 
three  hundred  and  thirty-six  feet  high.  There  are 
ten  thousand  spires  and  pinnacles  on  this  church,  and 
seven  thousand  of  them  are  surmounted  with  statues, 
and  the  other  three  thousand  will  be  when  the  work 
is  finished,  which  will  require  at  least  a  century.  It 
was  commenced  four  hundred  and  seventy-three 
years  ago.  The  interior  is  adorned  with  many  fine 
paintings.  The  massive  windows  are  of  the  finest 
stained  glass,  representing  thousands  of  Scripture 
scenes.  The  scene  from  the  top  of  the  Milan  Ca- 
thedral can  certainly  not  be  surpassed  in  the  world. 
The  spires  of  perhaps  a  hundred  towns  and  cities 
may  be  seen,  while  in  the  far-off*  distance  may  be 
seen  the  snowy  chain  of  the  Alps.  Mount  Eosa 
looms  up  more  grandly  than  any  other  peak, 
although  Mont  Blanc  is  plainly  seen :  the  former  is 
one  hundred  and  twenty-five  miles  away,  and  the 
latter  two  hundred  and  twenty. 

Among  the  other  things  of  interest  I  have  visited 
in  Milan,  I  ma};'  mention  the  Amphitheatre,  (now 
filled  with  French  artillery,)  which  is  capable  of 
seating  thirty-seven  thousand  people  !  Here  all  the 
fetes  of  a  national  character  are  performed.  Also 
went  to  see  the  great  original  painting  of  the  "Last 


II  A  L  '-S    T  R  A  V  E  L  S  .  85 

Snpper,"  by  Leonardo  Da  Vinci.  It  is  a  fresco,  in 
what  was  formerly  the  Convent  of  Le  Grazie,  but  is 
now  used  as  a  barracks  for  soldiers.  The  world  is 
flooded  with  copies  of  this  celebrated  painting, 
which  is  a  proof  of  its  excellence. 

I  have  visited  many  other  places  of  interest  in  the 
cit}',  but  it  would  be  a  bore  to  you  for  me  to  dwell 
on  them.  In  fact,  I  have  no  disposition  to  dwell  on 
them  now,  for  I  am  becoming  bored  seriously  with 
Milan,  not  less  than  six  street  organs  having  been 
furiously  grinding  near  by  ever  since  I  commenced 
this  letter.  I  am  fond  of  music,  but  too  much  of  a 
good  thing  is  not  pleasant. 

But  perhaps  I  ought  to  tell  you  something  about 
our  trip  from  Geneva  to  this  city.  I  will  do  it  for 
the  want  of  something  else  to  write  about,  although, 
like  nine  out  of  every  ten  who  attempt  to  do  so,  I 
have  no  "knack"  of  describing  scenerj'. 

To  begin  :  We  left  Geneva  on  the  morning  of  the 
ninth,  just  as  the  god  of  day  rolled  proudly  and 
sublimely  up  above  the  snowy  mountains  of  the 
cast.  The  sky  was  clear,  serene  and  lovely.  ]^ot  a 
breath  of  wind  disturbed  the  placid  bosom  of  the 
silvery  lake  which  reflected  the  deep  shadows  of  the 
black  Jura  on  one  side,  and  the  towering  Alps  on 
tlie  other.  Our  feathery  craft  glided  swiftly  and 
gracefully  over  the  still  waters  like  a  thing  of  life, 
and  nothing  was  there  to  jar  upon  the  senses  save  a 
slight  hissing  of  steam  and  the  flutter  of  the  paddle- 
wheels,  and  even  that  seemed  musical.  The  snowy 
villages  along  the  shore  were  as  lilies  nestling  upon 


86  HAL'S    TRAVELS. 

the  bosom  of  the  waters,  while  far  away  iu  the  dis- 
tance could  be  seen  the  beautiful  city  of  Vevay,  with 
its  tall  spires  reflected  beautifully  in  the  deep  blue 
lake.  Our  captain  stood  leaning  lazily  upon  the 
quarter -rail,  smoking  his  pipe,  while  passengers 
stood  in  mute  wonder  at  the  glorious  scenery  loom- 
ing up  on  every  hand.  Flocks  of  happy  waterfowl 
were  skimming  about  in  various  directions,  and 
anon  the  nimble  trout  could  be  seen  to  spring  high 
out  of  the  water  to  seize  the  unsuspecting  butterfly 
as  it  dallied  above  the  ripple.  All  on  board  that 
little  steamer  seemed  wrapped  in  meditation.  Your 
correspondent  was  in  a  peculiar  mood — bordering 
on  poetry — and  had  actually  got  two  lines  fully  com- 
posed, when  his  meditations  were  cruelly  broken  in 
upon  by  the  literary  young  lady  with  the  scanty 
breastworks,  (mentioned  in  former  letters,)  who 
came  up  and  said,  "Why,  Mr.  Hal,  what  is  the 
matter  with  you  ?  You  are  as  solemn  as  if  you  were 
going  to  a  funeral.  Do  rouse  yourself  and  come 
forward,  and  see  what  a  thumpin'  big  fish  a  sailor 
has  caught.  Come,  it's  in  a  tub  of  water  in  the 
forward  part  of  the  boat."  The  poetry  fled,  and  up 
to  this  time  I  have  not  been  able  to  whistle  it  back. 
I  went  and  saw  the  fish,  of  course. 

But  to  go  on  with  the  story.  We  left  the  steamer 
at  a  town  called  Bouveret,  (pronounced  Bouver«?/, 
for  you  know  the  French  take  a  sort  of  malicious 
pleasure  in  pronouncing  things  diflferently  from  the 
way  they  spell  them,)  at  the  east  end  of  the  lake, 
took  the  cars  and  travelled  through  the  mountain- 


hal's  travels.  87 

gorges  for  about  twenty  miles,  where  the  railway 
ceases.  Here  we  took  diligence,  and  continued  the 
journey  up  the  valley  of  the  river  Rhone,  until 
about  two  o'clock  at  night,  halting  at  the  town  of 
Breig,  just  where  the  ascent  of  the  Alps  begins. 
All  along  the  route  from  Geneva  to  Breig  we  noticed 
that  the  people  were  idle,  and  dressed  up  in  their 
Sunday  clothes.  We  concluded  that  the  ninth  of 
October  must  be  a  general  Swiss  holiday. 

At  Breig  we  stopped  on  the  10th,  for  we  have 
made  it  a  rule,  ever  since  leaving  home,  to  rest  on 
the  Sabbath.  "Were  greatly  shocked  to  see  the 
people  of  Breig  attending  to  all  the  ordinary  affairs 
of  life,  seeming  to  care  no  more  for  the  Sabbath 
than  if  they  had  never  known  such  a  day.  The 
smith's  hammer,  the  mason's  trowel,  and  the  car- 
penter's saw  were  heard,  while  the  mowers  in  the 
neighborhood  were  busy  gathering  in  their  scanty 
crops  of  haj.  The  stores  and  shops  were  all  open, 
and  the  peasant  women  were  lugging  their  great 
burdens  about  as  usual.  The  churches  were  there, 
but  no  glad  bell  was  heard  calling  the  people  to 
worship.  John  and  I  read  our  Bibles,  and  deeply 
commiserated  the  poor  ignorant  people,  believing 
that  they  were  ignorant  of  the  holiness  of  the  day. 
Late  in  the  afternoon  John  concluded  to  look  over 
his  diary,  in  doing  which  he  discovered  to  his  amaze- 
ment that  we  were  keeping  3fond(iy,  and  had  actually 
travelled  all  day  Sunday  !  We  could  then  account 
for  the  Swiss  holida3^ 

Tuesday  morning  we   took   the   diligence,   and 


88  HAL'S    TRAVELS. 

started  up  the  mountain,  tlie  Simplon  Pass.  This 
is  the  best  mountain  road  ever  built.  It  is  a  tri- 
umph of  engineering  skill  never  accomplished  before 
nor  since.  The  world  is  indebted  to  ITapoleon 
Bonaparte  for  it,  who,  remembering  the  great  diffi- 
culty he  found  in  crossing  the  Alps,  determined  to 
make  a  highway  that  cannon  could  be  carried  over 
without  difficulty.  It  is  a  stupendous  work,  the 
greatness  of  which  cannot  be  appreciated  without 
being  seen.  It  winds  up  the  mountain  in  such  a 
tortuous  and  zigzag  way,  that  even  where  it  is 
steepest,  it  does  not  rise  more  than  one  foot  in  thir- 
teen. The  cost  of  this  road  averaged  about  $25,000 
per  mile.  It  took  six  years  to  build  it,  and  more 
than  thirty  thousand  men  were  employed  on  it  at 
one  time.  Houses  of  refuge — seven  in  number — 
are  erected  at  convenient  distances,  to  protect  tra- 
vellers from  avalanches,  which  occur  frequently  in 
early  summer.  For  more  than  two-thirds  of  the 
way  up,  the  sides  of  the  mountain  are  covered  with 
vegetation,  and  wherever  a  dozen  yards  of  arable 
land  can  be  found,  there  is  the  hut  of  the  hardy 
mountaineer.  In  some  places  the  cabins  seem  to 
cling  to  the  sides  of  the  mountain  as  tenaciously  as 
a  bat  clings  to  the  wall  of  a  cavern.  After  gaining 
two-thirds  or  more  of  the  ascent,  nothing  but  a  pic- 
ture of  desolation  surrounds  the  traveller.  The  pine 
has  no  longer  the  scanty  pittance  of  soil  which  it 
requires  for  nourishment,  the  hardy  but  beautiful 
Alpine  flower  ceases  to  embellish  the  sterile  soli- 
tude.    The   eye   wanders   over  snow  and  glacier, 


hal'stravels.  89 

fractured  rock  and  roaring  cataract,  relieved  only  by 
that  stupendous  monument  of  Imman  labor,  the 
road  itself,  winding  along  the  edges  of  precipices, 
penetrating  the  solid  granite,  striding  over  the  furi- 
ous torrents,  burrowing  through  dark  and  dripping 
grottoes,  beneath  accumulated  masses  of  ice  and 
snow. 

Upon  reaching  the  highest  summit  or  culminat- 
ing point  of  the  Pass,  I  made  a  vigorous  effort  to 
work  myself  up  into  a  poetical  mood.  Thought  of 
all  the  romance  I  had  read  about  crossing  the 
"proud  Alps."  Jumped  up  on  a  large  rock,  waved 
my  hat  above  my  head,  gazed  at  the  country  below 
and  the  eternal  glaciers  above  ;  threw  my  shawl 
about  me,  and  imagined  that  it  looked  very  much 
like  Julius  Caesar's  mantle ;  and  while  it  waved  in 
the  breeze,  and  my  hair  streamed  in  the  wind,  I 
looked  away  down  the  acclivity  and  saw  far  down 
in  the  distance  a  great  lumbering  diligence  with  its 
long  team  crawling  around  a  point  of  the  mountain. 
I  thought  it  looked  like  a  huge  ant  winding  round 
a  potato-hill.  The  idea  was  so  ridiculous  that  I  in- 
voluntarily burst  into  a  laugh,  which  banished  ro- 
mance. Just  then  I  was  enveloped  in  a  passing 
cloud,  and  a  few  spits  of  snow  and  sleet  together, 
with  the  piercing  cold  wind,  Avarned  me  that  I  was 
exposing  myself,  when  I  muffled  up,  and  crawled 
into  the  diligence. 

Wo  descended  the  mountain  in  a  sweeping  trot, 
and  slept  that  night  in  Domo  d'Ossolo,  Italy.  The 
next  day  went  by  diligence  to  Palauza  on  Lake 


90  HAL'S     TRAVELS. 

Maggiore,  where  we  took  steamer  to  Arona,  and 
finished  the  trip  to  Milan  by  raih'oad.  Would  tell 
you  something  about  the  beauties  of  Lake  Maggiore, 
but  these  miserable  hand-organs  have  put  my  head 
to  aching,  so  I'll  quit  and  go  to  bed.     Good-night. 

Hal. 

P.  S. — We  go  to  Venice  to-morrow.     If  you  find' 
this  letter  bunglingly  got  up,  just  lay  it  to  the  organ- 
grinders,  for  they  have  kept  up  a  most  horrible 
squeaking. 


nAL'S    TRAVELS.  91 


LETTER   XI 


VENICE. 


At  last  in  Venice  ! — "Beautiful  Venice,  the  bride 
of  the  sea" — a  city  fair  to  look  upon,  and  as  strange 
as  it  is  fair.  Here  the  houses  are  palaces,  the  streets 
are  canals,  and  the  omnibusses,  hacks,  and  pleasure 
carriages  are  gondolas.  Dwelling  in  "marble  halls" 
is  not  a  "dream"  here,  but  a  reality.  Tlie  Hotel 
Vittoria,  where  we  stop,  was  in  olden  times  a  marble 
palace  of  great  splendor;  but  now,  like  many  other 
palaces  in  Venice,  it  looks  seedy.  Indeed,  the 
whole  city  wears  what  may  be  termed  a  shabby- 
genteel  appearance,  though  it  bears  evidences  of 
having  once  been  one  of  the  richest  and  most  mag- 
nificent cities  of  the  world.  It  is  beautiful  yet,  but 
cities,  like  belles,  must  fade  before  time. 

Every  thing  is  so  strange,  so  quiet  here.  The 
loudest  noise  lieard  is  man's  voice ;  no  lumbering 
drays  or  wagons  in  the  streets — no  clattering  car- 
riages, nor  tramp  of  horse.  There  be  grown-up 
men  and  women  too,  perhaps,  who  never  saw  a 
horse  or  wheeled  carriage  of  any  description  !  for 
such  things  are  not  here.  Gondolas  take  their 
place. 

I  love  dearly  to  skim  about  in  the  graceful  gon- 


92  hal'stravels. 

dola.  There  is  poetry  about  it,  especially  on  a 
moonlight  night.  Though  I  suspect  the  race  of 
gondoliers  is  degenerating.  When  Lord  Bj'ron 
lived  here  they  used  to  sing  as  they  plied  the  oar, 
and  we  read  that  he  caught  the  inspiration,  and 
upon  one  occasion  wrote  as  follows : 

"'Tis  sweet  to  hear 
At  midnight,  on  the  blue  and  moonlit  deep, 
The  song  and  oar  of  Adria's  gondolier. 
By  distance  mellowed,  o'er  the  waters  sweep." 

These  gondoliers  don't  sing  any  more.  I  have 
listened  for  one  of  their  songs  ever  since  my  arrival 
here,  but  have  heard  "nary"  song. 

The  Grand  Canal  is  to  Venice  what  Broadway  is 
to  'New  York — the  great  thoroughfare.  I  have 
spent  much  time  in  gliding  up  and  down  this  canal, 
gazing  at  the  great  and  gorgeous  palaces,  wonder- 
stricken,  with  eyes  stretched  to  a  size  little  less  than 
tea-cups.  And  then  the  flashing  eyes  that  beam 
and  sparkle  from  the  palace  windows,  and  the 
graceful  forms  that  lean  from  the  balconies,  set  my 
heart  all  a-flutter.  I  imagine  that  Jessica,  the  fair 
Jewess,  looked  as  they  look,  when  watching  for  her 
Lorenzo ;  (believe  that's  the  name  of  the  fellow  who 
stole  old  Shylock's  daughter.) 

And  I  have  stood  upon  the  Rialto,  the  splendid 
arch  that  spans  this  Grand  Canal.  Hard  by  it  is  the 
Exchange,  (it  is  a  market  now  for  fishes,)  where 
Antonio  and  Shylock  were  wont  in  former  times 
to  talk  of  trade  and  commerce,  and  where  Antonio 
spat  upon  the  Jew's  gabardine,   and  called  him 


i'J^J 


II  AL'S    TRAVELS.  95 

"dog;"  and  it  was  there,  or  thereabout,  tlic  bond 
was  sealed  for  the  pound  of  flesh.  Some  of  the 
Shylock  family  arc  said  to  be  still  found  in  the 
neighborhood.  The  Rialto  is  a  specimen  of  archi- 
tecture never  surpassed,  either  in  ancient  or  in 
modern  times.  Numerous  little  shops  for  the  sale 
of  bogus  jewelry,  cheap  goods,  and  worthless 
trinkets,  are  now  upon  this  bridge. 

St.  Mark's  Square  is  the  centre  of  attraction  in 
Venice.  It  is  an  open  space  of  several  acres,  paved 
with  marble  slabs,  and  surrounded  with  buildings 
of  great  magnificence.  These  houses  are  occupied 
as  splendid  shops  and  brilliant  cafes,  with  colonnades. 
It  is  a  place  of  general  resort,  and  bands  of  music 
often  play  in  it.  The  diie  of  the  city,  and  strangers 
innumerable,  may  always  be  found  in  St.  Mark's 
Square.  In  front  of  the  cafes,  people  of  all  nations 
under  the  sun  may  be  seen  sipping  their  punch, 
their  wine,  or  their  coffee — playing  cards,  dominoes, 
or  chess. 

On  one  side  of  this  square  stands  St.  Mark's 
Cathedral,  one  of  the  most  quaint  as  well  as  most 
magnificent  buildings  in  the  world.  It  would  fill 
many  pages  to  give  any  thing  approaching  a  descrip- 
tion of  this  ancient  structure,  so  I  shall  not  attempt 
it.  N'early  the  whole  of  the  interior  is  mosaic  of 
the  finest  kind,  representing  many  sacred  scenes. 
The  four  gilded  bronze  horses,  stolen,  I  believe,  by 
the  Venetians  from  Constantinople,  stand  above  the 
grand  portal  of  this  church.  The  Doge's  palace,  of 
which  structure  everybody  has  read  something,  is 


96  HAL'S    TRAVELS. 

connected  with  this  cathedral.  In  architecture  it  is 
a  masterpiece,  and  very  large.  I  have  wandered 
through  it,  and  looked  at  almost  acres  of  paintings, 
many  of  them  by  Titian,  Tintoretto,  and  other  old 
masters.  Titian  was  a  Venetian.  Was  also  con- 
ducted through  the  gloomy  prisons  of  this  palace, 
where  many  noble,  wise,  and  good  men  have  pined 
their  lives  away.  Also  crossed  the  Bridge  of  Sighs, 
leading  from  the  palace  prison  to  another  prison 
more  gloomy  still,  and  from  which  no  prisoner  ever 
returned  who  entered  it  by  way  of  this  fatal  bridge. 
The  prison  is  separated  from  the  palace  by  a  canal, 
across  which  the  Bridge  of  Sighs  is  suspended,  some 
twenty  feet  above  the  water. 

A  part  of  the  Palazzo  San  Marco,  or  St,  Mark's 
Square,  opens  upon  the  bay,  where  two  magnificent 
granite  columns  stand,  one  of  which  is  crowned 
with  a  winged  lion,  called  St.  Mark's  lion  ;  (St.  Mark 
is  the  patron  saint  of  Venice,  and  every  thing  im- 
portant must  be  called  after  him.)  The  story  of 
these  columns  is  this:  They  were  pillaged  from 
some  other  city,  (don't  remember  what  city,)  and 
brought  to  Venice  many  centuries  ago,  but  so  great 
was  their  size  that  no  man  could  be  found  who 
would  undertake  to  elevate  them  upon  their  pedes- 
tals. After  they  had  lain  for  a  great  many  years 
upon  the  ground,  a  celebrated  gambler  of  the  city 
proposed  to  the  Doge  that  he  would  raise  and  place 
them  upon  their  pedestals,  upon  the  condition  that 
he  and  his  friends  should  ever  after  have  the  privi- 
lege of  gambling  between  them,  without  being  in- 


UAL'S    TRAVELS.  97 

tcrfered  witli  by  the  law.  This  was  granted  by  tlie 
Doge,  although  gambling  was  prohibited  in  all 
other  parts  of  Venice,  and  severely  punished  b}^  the 
law.  The  columns  were  elevated  on  this  condition, 
but  in  the  course  of  time  the  space  between  them 
became  such  a  resort  for  gamblers  and  desperate 
characters,  that  the  civil  authorities  found  it  abso- 
lutely necessary  to  do  something  to  suppress  the 
scenes  there  enacted.  They  could  only  do  it  b}^ 
decreeing  that  all  public  executions  should  take 
place  on  the  same  spot.  This  broke  up  the  gam- 
bling. 

We  have  now  been  in  Venice  four  days,  and  have 
visited  a  great  many  churches,  palaces,  asylums, 
etc.,  and  have  looked  at  and  admired  paintings  by 
the  acre,  and  statues  innumerable. 

It  would  not  take  me  long  to  tire  of  Venice ; 
every  thing  is  so  silent  and  monotonous.  I  want  to 
be  where  I  can  see  hills  and  movintains,  and  look 
upon  running  water.  John  is  already  satisfied  with 
Venice. 

"We  came  through  from  Milan  by  rail,  passing 
through  Verona,  Padua,  etc.,  the  former  of  which 
is  rendered  immortal  by  Shakspeare,  as  the  scene 
where  figured  Romeo  and  Juliet.  The  tomb  of  the 
fiiir  Juliet  is  still  pointed  out  to  travellers.  Verona 
is  also  celebrated  on  account  of  its  great  Roman 
amphitheatre,  second  only  to  the  Coliseum  at 
Rome.  Padua  is  also  very  ancient,  and  is  also  the 
place  in  which  some  of  Shakspeare's  characters 
ligured.  It  is  the  place  of  Livy's  birth  and  resid- 
4 


98  HAL'S    TRAVELS. 

ence.    Giotti,  the  great  painter,  also  lived  tliere,  and 
his  paintings  adorn  many  of  the  old  churches  now. 
We  go  from  here  to  Florence,  by  way  of  Padua, 
Eovego,  Ferrara,  Bologna,  etc.     Adieu. 

Hal. 


HAL'S    TRAVELS.  99 


LETTER    XII. 

VENICE     TO     FLORENCE. 

After  a  vast  deal  of  trouble  and  vexation  by  the 
way,  I  am  at  length  in  the  classic  city  of  Florence, 
the  centre  of  art  in  Europe,  and  very  near  the  centre 
of  poor  bleeding  Italy.  And  being  snugly  housed 
in  my  new  quarters,  I  cannot  better  spend  an  hour 
perhaps  than  in  scribbling  you  a  few  lines. 

But  what  shall  I  write  about?  I  could  write  col- 
umns of  doleful  twaddle  about  the  torn  and  dis- 
tracted condition  of  the  Italian  States.  I  could  get 
up  a  most  solemn  article  about  the  poor  down-trod- 
den Italians,  who  writhe  beneath  the  iron  heel  of 
Popery.  I  might  write  pages  of  dreary  nonsense 
about  the  black  and  threatening  war-cloud  that  is  now 
hanging  over  the  whole  of  Europe,  or  get  up  a  read- 
able article  about  the  attitude  of  France  and  Eng- 
land, who  now  stand  eyeing  each  other  like  two 
furious  ram-cats  upon  the  point  of  a  most  disastrous 
clapper-clawing.  Or  I  might  scribble  long  and  loud 
about  England  and  the  United  States,  the  San  Juan 
difficulty,  and  our  success  in  the  Celestial  Empire, 
and  the  discomfiture  of  the  British  at  the  mouth  of 
the  Peiho.     Again,  I  might  write  a  stirring  appeal 


100  iial's  travels. 

to  the  world  in  behalf  of  the  Italian  patriots  who 
followed  the  lead  of  Victor  Emanuel  and  Garibaldi, 
and  loom  extensively  against  the  bloody-minded 
Pope,  and  tyrannical  Austria.  I  say,  I  might  spread 
myself  on  any  or  all  of  these  subjects,  but  what 
would  it  all  amount  to  ?  The  light  that  I  could 
throw  upon  any  of  them  would  be  so  infinitesimally 
small,  that  a  glass  magnifying  a  thousand  times 
would  be  required  to  see  it.  So  I  shall  pass  them 
all  by,  and  endeavor  to  pen  what  you  may  term  an 
"  anti-blue-devil"  document ;  for  I  hold  that  he  who 
dispels  one  vapor  from  the  mental  sky  of  his  read- 
ers, does  more  good  sometimes  than  he  who  con- 
vulses nations.  !N"onsense  is  a  good  thing  in  its 
place — better  on  some  occasions  than  volumes  of 
learned  lore. 

"  A  little  nonsense  now  and  then 
Is  relished  by  the  wisest  men." 

So  I  say.  Paradoxical  as  it  may  seem,  nonsense  is 
sometimes  the  best  of  sense — old  fogies  and  long- 
faced  Solons  to  the  contrary  notwithstanding. 

I  am  no  grumbler.  I  call  upon  you  to  bear  me 
witness  that  in  all  that  I  have  written  during  my 
travels,  I  have  never  written  one  line  in  a  grumbling 
spirit.  Travellers,  you  know,  are  almost  universally 
grumblers.  It  is  their  right,  and,  as  they  pay  for  the 
privilege,  they  love  to  enjoy  it.  Hotel -keepers, 
Avaiters,  and  servants  generally  come  in  for  their 
share  of  censure,  while  the  public  conveyances  and 
their  conductors  are  almost  universally  inveighed 


iial's  travels.  101 

agiiinst.  The  English  traveller  (and  his  name  is 
legion)  never  finds  any  thing  on  the  Continent  like 
it  is  at "  'ome,"  hence  he  is  in  a  grumbling  mood  all 
the  time.  It  has  been  a  source  of  some  amusement 
to  rac  to  watch  and  listen  to  some  of  these  people. 
Still,  I  must  say,  John  Bull  is  a  good  fellow  at  bot- 
tom, and  I  trust  the  day  will  never  come  when  we 
shall  be  at  daggers-points  with  him  ;  although  I  go 
in  for  our  Government  holding  on  to  the  San  Juan  Is- 
land, even  to  the  bitter  end,  daggers  or  no  daggers. 

But,  as  I  said  above,  I  am  no  grumbler,  but  one 
of  the  bcst-natured  individuals  in  the  world — a  model 
of  patience,  a  paragon  of  submissiveness ;  in  fact,  a 
second  ]Mrs.  Caudle,  who,  you  know,  declared  on 
divers  occasions  that  she  was  "  the  patientest  thing 
alive."  If  it  were  not  so,  I  should  have  been  in  a 
perfect  stew  for  the  last  five  days.  To  have  under- 
gone what  I  have  in  that  time  would  have  made 
Socrates  (who  was  reputed  to  be  a  man  of  great 
patience)  tear  his  hair  and  gnash  his  teeth  in  very 
wrath,  and  Job  would  possibly  have  cursed  outright, 
while  Samson  would  have  overturned  mountains  in 
his  anger.  Yet  I  did  none  of  these  wicked  things. 
I  will  give  you  an  outline  of  the  grievances  that  be- 
set me  by  the  way  from  Venice  to  this  city. 

It  was  a  dull  cloud}'  morning  that  John  and  my- 
self took  our  departure  from  the  beautiful  "  city  of 
the  sea."  Upon  arriving  at  the  railway-station,  our 
carpet-bags  were  taken  charge  of  by  an  Austrian 
custom-house  ofiicer,  who,  upon  our  noncompliance 
with  the  general  custom  of  slipping  a  few  francs 


102  hal's  travels. 

into  his  hand  as  a  bribe,  proceeded  to  search  them 
most  thoroughly,  tearing  our  clothes  out,  unrolling 
them,  peeping  into  every  hole  and  corner,  leaving 
them  scattered  in  the  most  promiscuous  manner. 
In  the  search  he  found  in  each  of  our  carpet-bags  a 
small  roll  of  Turkish  tobacco.  Upon  this  discovery 
his  eyes  glistened  with  fiendish  delight,  and  grin- 
ning horribly  a  ghastly  smile,  he  passed  it  over  to  a 
second  official,  who  responded  to  his  chuckle.  After 
weighing  the  tobacco,  and  making  a  great  many 
figures  in  a  business-like  way,  we  were  informed 
that  we  could  take  our  choice,  either  to  go  back  to 
the  city  under  an  escort  of  soldiers,  or  pay  three 
dollars  and  fifty  cents  and  go  on  our  way.  We 
chose  the  latter,  shook  the  dust  from  our  feet,  and 
departed.  John  bullied  them  out  of  a  dollar  which 
they  wanted  him  to  pay  on  a  cigar-case.  This  was 
only  our  first  trouble.  Tw^o  hours  after  leaving  Ven- 
ice we  arrived  at  Padua,  where  we  designed  taking 
diligence  for  this  city.  The  hotel-keeper  informed 
us  that  the  seats  in  the  diligence  were  all  engaged, 
and  that  we  would  have  to  remain  there  twenty-four 
hours,  or  place  ourselves  in  the  tender  clutches  of  a 
vetturino.  He  (the  hotel-keeper)  would  be  gainer, 
let  us  adopt  what  course  we  would,  for  he  was  the 
proprietor  of  the  carriages  as  well  as  the  hotel.  We 
were  immediately  surrounded  by  a  swarm  of  vettu- 
rinos,  who  pretended  to  be  rivals,  but  really  all  the 
servants  of  the  same  proprietor.  One  of  them  pro- 
posed to  carry  us  to  Ferrara  in  time  for  the  diligence 
next  day,  for  eighty  francs.     Another  said  he  would 


hal'r  travels.  103 

carry  ns  for  seventy-five  francs.  A  third  very  gen- 
erously proposed  to  carry  us  through  for  sixty. 
Thinking  we  would  get  the  passage  cheap,  we  pro- 
fessed to  he  content  to  remain  in  Padua  until  the 
next  day  for  the  diligence.  Finally,  one  fellow  ap- 
proached us  and  oftered  to  take  us  for  the  low  price 
of  fifty  francs.  We  closed  the  hargain,  thinking  it 
dirt-cheap,  and  found  out  too  late  that  it  was  twenty 
francs  more  than  we  ought  to  have  paid.  Left  Pa- 
dua in  a  sweeping  gallop,  and  in  the  midst  of  a 
beating  rain. 

Arrived  at  Rovego  about  eight  o'clock  at  night, 
where  our  passports  were  demanded.  Handed  them 
over ;  and  by  some  sort  of  hocus-pocus  trick  they 
were  retained  for  twenty-eight  hours!  The  oflicer 
whose  duty  it  was  to  sign  them,  was  out  of  place — 
on  a  spree,  perhaps — and  there  we  had  to  stay,  in  a 
hotel  like  a  dog-kennel,  surrounded  with  beggars 
and  low,  greasy  Italians.  Some  people  would  have 
got  mad  under  such  circumstances.  Got  our  pass- 
ports at  length,  and  made  another  start.  At  Ma- 
dalena,  at  the  crossing  of  the  river  Po,  were  stopped 
again,  and  had  to  hunt  an  hour  in  the  rain  for 
another  little  upstart  Austrian  officer  to  sign  our 
passports,  and  during  the  whole 'time  were  sur- 
rounded and  set  upon  by  a  horde  of  long,  lank, 
lean,  lazy,  lounging,  loafing,  lame,  lying,  lousy  laz- 
zaroni,  whose  sole  business  is  begging.  I  amused 
myself  by  bouncing  the  small  end  of  my  stick  off 
some  of  their  heads,  which  is  evidence  that  I  am 
one   of  the  best-natured  creatures  in   the  world; 


104  hal's  travels. 

otherwise  I  slioukl  have  gone  in  for  breaking  necks. 
John  boiled  over.  Well,  in  the  course  of  time,  we 
crossed  the  Po,  and  reached  the  city  of  Ferrara  in 
time  to  find  that  we  were  too  late  for  the  diligence, 
and  all  the  seats  even  for  the  next  day  had  been 
taken.  Another  struggle  with  the  vetturinos, 
dozens  of  whom  ofi:ered  their  services  to  take  us  to 
Bologna.  Finally  struck  a  bargain  with  one,  and 
afjain  found  out  too  late  that  we  were  swindled 
worse  than  before.  Got  to  Bologna  and  found  the 
diligence  again  full,  and  all  the  seats  engaged  for 
two  days  ahead.  Stayed  at  Bologna  twenty-four 
hours — long  enough  to  see  all  the  sights  of  the  city, 
and  test  the  quality  of  the  Bologna  sausages.  Our 
landlord  was  a  growling,  snarling,  snappish  fellow. 
John  said  it  was  owing  to  his  having  eaten  so 
many  sausages.  The  point  of  the  joke  "  came  to 
me"  two  days  afterwards. 

At  Boloacna  we  hired  another  vetturino.  He  was 
a  real  nice  fellow,  and  agreed  to  put  us  through  to 
Florence  in  the  most  genteel  style.  Showed  us  his 
nice  carriage,  to  which  he  would  hitch  three  s]3lendid 
horses.  "We  agreed  to  pay  him  a  round  price  for 
the  extra  fine  style  in  Avhich  we  w^ere  to  travel.  At 
the  appointed  hour  we  set  off  in  a  gallop,  really 
proud  of  our  splendid  three-horse  turnout.  It  was 
two  o'clock  in  the  evening.  At  seven  our  postilion 
halted  at  a  miserable  inn,  which  was  full  of  drunken, 
brigandish -looking  fellows,  and  the  landlord  of 
which  had  a  most  villainous  face.  There  we  had 
to  sleep  till  morning,  or  rather  waich ;  for  it  w^ould 


iial's  travels.  105 

require  a  very  sanguine  man  to  sleep  in  a  house 
filled  with  such  ferocious-looking  creatures  as  were 
there,  and  that  too  in  a  gorge  of  the  Apennines, 
once  fiiraous  for  robbers.  The  carousal  was  kept 
up  nearly  all  night,  and  we  watched  with  vigilance, 
but  didn't  see  "nary  banditti."  When  morning 
came,  we  found  that  our  fine  vetturino  had  de- 
camped—taken the  back  track  to  Bologna — and 
had  left  us  to  bo  forwarded  in  a  miserable  one-horse 
concern,  under  the  care  of  a  new  postilion  !  We 
had  our  choice — either  to  submit  to  the  outrage, 
and  go  on,  stay  where  we  were,  or  walk  back  to 
Bologna  for  the  purpose  of  whipping  the  proprietor. 
As  travellers  never  like  to  turn  back,  we  went 
ahead.  After  travelling  three  or  four  hours,  were 
again  transferred  to  an  old  barouche,  drawn  by  two 
frames  of  horses,  a  sight  of  which  would  have  made 
a  turkey-buzzard  smack  his  lips,  and  rejoice  at  the 
prospect  of  an  early  feast.  With  i:his  turnout  we 
finished  the  long  and  tedious  ascent  of  the  Apen- 
nines, and  descended  into  the  beautiful  level  country 
on  this  side.  At  Pistoja  our  postilion  dumped  us 
down,  some  twenty  miles  from  Florence,  notwith- 
standing our  distinct  contract  with  the  proprietor 
to  put  us  all  the  way  through  to  this  city.  The 
postilion  said  that  his  instructions  were  to  bring  us 
no  farther ;  and  he  would  not  do  it.  As  Pistoja  is 
a  railroad  station,  we  frightened  the  postilion  into 
buying  us  tickets,  when  we  took  rail  and  landed 
here  safely,  in  a  little  more  than  five  days  from 
Venice. 


106  hal's   travels. 

Now,  considering  all  the  troubles  and  besetments 
that  met  us  by  the  way,  don't  you  think  we  did  well 
to  keep  our  teniper  ?  What  would  Job  have  done, 
or  what  would  even  Mrs.  Caudle  have  done,  under 
the  circumstances?  But,  as  I  said  before,  I  don't 
grumble. 

I  have  not  been  in  Florence  long  enough  to  tell 
you  any  thing  about  it.  Will  do  so,  perhaps,  before 
long.  Can  only  say  that  it  is  a  city  of  great  beauty, 
and  is  the  most  beautifully  situated  of  any  city  I 
ever  saw,  being  almost  surrounded  by  gently  rising 
mountains,  the  sides  of  which  are  dotted  with  villas 
and  gardens  of  much  loveliness.  The  river  Arno 
flows  through  the  midst  of  the  city.  I  promise 
myself  much  pleasure  in  visiting  the  many  galleries 
of  art  here,  which  are  the  finest  in  the  world, 
except,  perhaps,  those  of  Rome.  Have  visited  the 
family  of  the  American  Consul,  General  Mallett, 
where  I  was  courteously  received  and  entertained. 
General  M.  is  a  high-toned  gentleman,  and  Mrs.  M. 
a  most  accomplished  lady. 

Think  I  shall  visit  Rome  and  Naples  some  time 
during  the  winter,  provided  there  is  no  war  in  this 
country.     If  there  be  war,  I  shall  be  on  the  right  side. 

As  this  letter  is  long  enough,  I  shall  desist  for  the 
present,  with  the  cry  of,  "  Three  cheers  for  Victor 
Emanuel  and  Garibaldi !  Nine  cheers  for  Uncle  Sam ! 
Death  to  Popery  and  the  double-headed  Austrian 
Eagle !  Liberty  to  Ital}^  and  the  world,  mental, 
moral,  and  political !     So  mote  it  me! 

Yours,  etc.,  Hal. 


HAL'S    TRAVELS.  107 


LETTER  XIII. 

FLORENCE. 

The  following  was  written  to  Dr.  Antony,  of 
Huntsville,  Alabama: 

Dear  Doctor  : — God  bless  you !  Yes,  I  repeat  it 
with  euerg}',  God  bless  you  !  You  have  made  my 
heart  glad.  Your  letter — the  first  that  I  have  re- 
ceived from  any  source  since  crossing  the  Atlantic — 
reached  me  to-day,  and  was  as  a  balm,  a  soothing 
cordial  to  my  heart.  Your  kind  and  pleasant 
words  were  like  "apples  of  gold  in  pictures  of 
silver,"  Would  that  I  could  write  a  response  in 
equally  elegant  and  pleasant  style ;  but  as  I  cannot, 
being  a  plain,  blunt  man,  you  must  accept  such  a 
document  as  I  can  pen.     But 

Mercy  on  us  !  AVhat  a  noise  !  what  a  hubbub  ! 
what  a  rumpus !  what  a  hellabaloo  has  been  kept 
up  hi  Florence  this  whole  blessed  day,  and  is  still, 
though  eight  o'clock  at  night,  going  on  without  the 
least  abatement.  Bomb — bomb — bang — bang — 
ding-dong — rattle,  rattle !  Was  the  like  ever  heard  ! 
A  thousand  bells,  of  all  sizes,  tones,  and  descriptions, 
all  ringing  at  once,  and  each  particular  bell,  with- 


108  hal's  travels. 

out  tlie  least  regard  to  harmony,  exerting  all  its 
powers  to  ring  louder  and  more  harshly  than  its 
neighbor.  I  am  really  almost  distracted  with  the 
noise,  and  shall  make  hut  a  poor  out  writing  to- 
night. To-day  is  a  great  Catholic  festival — All- 
Saints'  day — but  from  my  heart  I  pity  all  saints  who 
have  remained  in  Florence  to  witness  its  celebra- 
tion ;  for  surely  they  will  retire  with  aching  heads. 
"  Old  Nick"  himself  (and  he  is  generally  allowed  to 
be  a  brave  one)  is  made  of  more  plucky  stuff  than 
ordinary  devils  are  supposed  to  be  made  of,  if  he 
has  stood  his  ground  to-day.  Nay ;  if  he  has  ears 
to  hear,  and  wings  to  fly,  I  must  think  he  made  his 
escape  with  the  dawn  of  day.  And  wise  would  it 
have  been  for  every  peaceable,  quiet,  well-disposed 
person  to  have  followed  his  example — not  that  I 
approve  of  people  following  the  example  of  so  vil- 
lainous a  vagabond,  as  a  general  thing.  But  any 
thing  to  get  away  from  a  Catholic  festival,  where 
they  have  as  many  bells  as  they  have  in  Florence. 
If  I  were  not  in  an  ill-humor,  I  would  spend  my 
opinion  freely  about  those  tormenting  bells,  and 
the  people  who  ring  them,  but  shall  refrain  from 
domg  so  until  I  am  more  composed.  I  might  say 
something  harsh,  which  would  no  doubt  be  very 
lacerating  to  the  feelings  of  the  "holy  fathers;" 
and  that  would  be  cruel,  you  know.  Besides,  it  is 
not  in  my  nature  to  wound  the  feelings  of  my  fel- 
low-men wantonly,  more  especially  those  whose 
mission  it  is  to  remit  sins,  and  whose  privilege  it  is 
to  grant  indulgences  to  those  who  may  desire  to 


hal's  travels.  109 

transgress  the  holy  commandments  of  God.  I^To ; 
far  be  it  from  me  to  speak  harshly  or  disparagingly 
of  so  large  and  so  very  respectable  a  bod}'  of  men, 
whose  rigid,  energetic,  and  persevering  piety  is  no 
less  vividly  marked  in  their  sleek,  round  faces,  than 
in  the  sacred  robes  they  wear.  I^a}',  let  me  not 
olFend  them  ;  for  I  would  as  soon  have  a  legion  of 
devils  after  me,  as  an  army  of  pot-bellied  priests. 
The  annals  of  Italy  prove  that  they  are  a  desperate 
and  bloodthirsty  people,  notwithstanding  their 
fierce  sanctity.  Then  let  them  ring  their  bells,  eat 
their  wafers,  grant  indulgences,  remit  sins,  strut  the 
streets,  grind  the  poor,  crush  liberty,  and  fill  the 
land  with  beggars :  I  shall  not  say  aught  against 
their  peace  and  quiet.  But  enough  about  the 
Catholics  and  their  bells.  I  must  tell  you  some- 
thing about  Florence. 

But  hark!  There  comes  "a  rapping  at  my 
chamber-door." '■^Entree." 

My  landlady's  daughter  has  just  been  in  to  inform 
me  that  an  American  gentleman  in  an  adjoining 
house  has  been  found  dead  in  his  room.  If  you 
will  excuse  me  for  a  little  while,  I'll  go  and  make 
inquiries  about  it.  Hope  the  bells  have  not  caused 
his  sudden  death. 

The  foregoing  was  written  last  night,  from  which 
I  was  called  abruptly  to  the  chamber  of  death.    The 

man  was  dead — very  dead.     A  Mr.  B.,  of  P , 

a  victim  of  "cold  pisou,"  caused,  as  ho  left  "a  billy- 


110  hal's  travels. 

dux  a  stating,"  by  circumstances  similar  to  those 
which  caused  Sickles  to  murder  Key.  Yes,  he  is 
gone,  and  is  by  this  time  no  doubt  safely  ferried 
over  the  river  Styx,  and  landed  where  all  suicides  go. 

Perhaps  you  think  I  speak  too  lightly  of  so  seri- 
ous a  matter — that  I  ought  to  call  up  a  few  croco- 
dile tears,  and  say  "poor  fellow,"  and  all  that  sort 
of  stuff.  Perhaps  I  ought,  but  I  cannot.  I  have  a 
peculiar  notion  about  suicides.  They  quit  the 
world  because  they  cannot  make  the  world  quit 
them.  If  they  could  crush  the  world,  and  leave 
themselves  living,  they  would  do  it;  but  as  they 
cannot,  they  destroy  themselves.  And  besides, 
they  are  stimulated  to  the  act  by  the  knowledge 
that  they  will  be  honored  with  a  great  funeral  pro- 
cession, and  have  the  sympathies  of  the  world,  and 
that  their  death  and  attendant  circumstances  will  be 
heralded  to  all  parts  of  the  world  in  the  newspapers. 
If  it  were  law  and  the  custom  (and  it  ought  to  be) 
to  bur}'  all  suicides  with  their  faces  down,  and  stakes 
driven  through  their  bodies,  such  occurrences  would 
be  few  and  far  between.  But  you  may  say  that  a 
man  is  deranged  when  he  takes  his  own  life.  Very 
likely  ;  but  would  not  the  reflection  upon  such  a 
disposition  of  the  body,  and  the  absence  of  the  sym- 
pathies of  the  world,  bring  about  a  sober  second 
thought,  and  prevent  that  methodical  derangement  ? 
It  seems  so  to  me. 

But  I  must  tell  you  something  about  Florence,  if 
I  can  find  a  starting-point.  Would  that  I  could 
paint  you  a  picture  of  this  lovely  city  !     I  know  you 


iial's   travels.  Ill 

would  be  clmvmcd  with  it,  for  it  is  the  gem,  the 
crowning  jewel  of  all  the  beautiful  things  I  have 
seen  in  Europe.  If  it  be  true  that  "a  thing  of 
beauty  is  a  joy  for  ever,"  I  could  impart  to  you  a 
lasting  joy.  But  I  despair.  I  feel  powerless  as  an 
infant.  I  cannot  impart  to  you  even  an  outline.  I 
have  groped  about  amid  magnificence  and  in  beauty 
until  I  am  sick.  You  may  laugh  at  me,  but  it  is 
true !  I  am  sick  with  seeing.  When  I  wander 
through  the  galleries,  the  palaces,  the  churches  and 
the  gardens,  I  become  faint,  and  my  head  throbs 
with  pain,  caused  by  the  continued  and  labored 
effort  of  the  mind  to  comprehend  the  grandeur  of 
the  objects  presented.  I  am  robbed  of  more  than 
half  the  pleasure  by  the  exceeding  beauty  and  great- 
ness of  what  1  see.  This  is  no  idle  assertion,  but  a 
truth.     I  know  not  if  it  be  so  with  others. 

But  you  perhaps  expect  me  to  tell  you  something 
about  the  city.  And  as  the  galleries  of  paintings 
are  the  first  places  visited  by  most  travellers,  and  as 
it  is  their  custom,  almost  universally — especially 
those  who  write — to  tell  of  what  "they  there  see, 
(and  they  are  generally  severe  critics,)  you  may  pos- 
sibly expect  a  similar  tirade  from  me.  You  shall 
not,  however,  be  so  bored.  I  shall  not  attempt  to 
criticise  a  single  painting.  You  may  wonder  that 
I  should  so  far  depart  from  the  general  custom — 
and,  indeed,  it  is  to  be  wondered  at — especially 
when  you  reflect  that  I  can  find  so  many  wise  and 
learned  criticisms  already  prepared  to  my  hands, 
and  nothing  to  do  but  to  adopt  and  copy  them. 


112  iial's  travels. 

Guide-books  arc  of  great  advantage  to  critics,  and 
to  descriptive  writers  generally.  But  unfortunately 
for  me,  I  made  the  sad  discovery,  when  in  Paris, 
that  I  was  no  judge  of  pictures.  I  made  the  dis- 
covery thus :  It  was  in  the  Luxembourg  Palace, 
which  is  filled  with  the  paintings  of  living  artists. 
I  was  standing  before  a  picture  with  some  friends, 
and  was  pointing  out  to  said  friends  the  peculiar 
beauties  and  excellence  of  said  picture.  I  had 
selected  it  as  the  finest  work  of  art  in  the  room,  and 
was  well-nigh  going  into  ecstasies  over  it,  when  I 
heard  a  voice  behind  me  utter  that  senseless  but 
very  significant  word,  "Bosh!"  Looking  round, 
who  should  be  there  but  a  gentleman  in  whose  taste 
and  judgment  I  had  the  most  unbounded  confi- 
dence. Irony  and  sarcasm  were  depicted  in  the 
contemptuous  smiles  that  sat  upon  his  face.  He 
then  went  into  a  critical  analysis  of  the  before-men- 
tioned painting,  making  it  as  clear  as  mud  to  all 
present  that  it  was  one  of  the  most  contemptible 
daubs  ever  suftered  to  occupy  a  public  position — a 
disgrace  to  the  gallery.  I  wilted,  and  never  since 
that  day  have  I  attempted  to  criticise  a  picture. 

But  this  is  not  telling  you  about  Florence.  Just 
imagine  yourself  with  me,  and  we  will  take  a  stroll 
over  the  city,  the  day  being  one  of  the  most  lovely 
of  the  season.  Our  walk  must  be  a  hurried  one — 
just  taking  time  to  glance  at  the  things  along  the 
way.  First  we  will  go  to  the  great  Cathedral  of  St. 
Maria  del  Fiore,  one  of  the  greatest  lions  of  the 
city.     Does  it  not  loom  up  grandly  ?    It  is  built,  or 


hal's  travels.  113 

rather  encased,  in  polished  inarhlc  of  various  colors, 
and  is  one  of  the  largest  in  Italy,  being  four  hun- 
dred and  twenty-six  feet  long,  and  three  hundred 
and  fifty-three  feet  wide ;  and  that  dome  you  see 
perched  up  so  high  is  one  hundred  and  forty  feet 
from  one  angle  to  the  other,  said  to  be  the  largest 
dome  in  the  world,  except  the  Pantheon  at  Rome. 
By  going  up  to  the  top  of  that,  you  have  an  excellent 
view  of  Florence  and  the  country  around.  Let  us 
go  inside.  Here,  stop  at  the  door,  and  look  away 
yonder  at  the  high  altar.  It  is  nearly  two  hundred 
yards  off.  Those  priests  you  see  officiating  there 
look  no  larger  than  grasshoppers.  But  is  not  the 
view  a  grand  one — one  vast  hall  nearly  two  hundred 
yards  long,  and  high  in  proportion  ?  'Now  let  us 
enter  and  look  at  the  thousand  and  one  contrivances 
by  which  Popery  gulls  the  people.  The  floor  you 
see  is  of  marble  of  various  colors,  worked  into  many 
kinds  of  figures ;  the  walls  ditto.  The  altars  are 
gorgeous,  and  the  stained-glass  windows  are  very 
pretty.  But  for  fear  you  may  hurt  your  neck  look- 
ing up  at  the  frescoes  in  the  great  dome,  we  will  re- 
tire, and  come  again  when  we  have  more  time.  As 
we  are  a  little  hurried,  we  will  pass  by  all  the  other 
churches  to-day,  although  there  are  a  hundred  worth 
visiting,  representing  every  style  of  architecture, 
and  frescoes  innumerable. 

"We  will  now  go  to  the  Pitti  palace,  if  you  please. 
On  our  way  thither  we  pass  by  several  other  palaces, 
the  most  imposing  of  which  is  that  of  Ufizzi,  which 
looms  up  massive  and  gloomy  just  on  the  corner  of 


114  iial's  travels. 

the  Square  Gran  Diica.  "We  Avill  not  enter  now,  for 
we  would  not  have  time  to  examine  the  hundreds 
of  .celebrated  paintings  which  it  contains.  Just  by 
it  is  the  Royal  Gallery,  the  most  valuable  treasure 
Florence  possesses.  Here  we  might  spend  a  day, 
and  then  retire  with  the  determination  to  come  again 
and  again.  "We  will  pass  this  by  also,  for  were  you 
to  go  in,  you  would  soon  be  lost  in  admiration  of  the 
famous  Venus  de  Medicis,  and  other  great  works  of 
art,  and  would  forget  the  Pitti  palace.  Now  we  will 
cross  the  Arno  over  this  magnificent  stone-bridge, 
and  in  one  minute's  walk  will  be  at  the  Palazzo 
Pitti.  Here  it  is.  Is  it  not  enough  to  make  man 
feel  insignificant  to  look  up  at  those  massive  walls  ? 
See  those  huge  stones  of  which  it  is  built ;  rough 
almost  as  they  came  from  the  quarry,  but  so  large ! 
some  ten  and  some  twenty  feet  long.  Is  it  not  as- 
tonishing ?  Don't  your  head  begin  to  pain  you  ? 
Mine  does.  But  it  will  be  worse  before  we  get 
through.  "We  will  now  pass  this  sentinel  and  go  in, 
and  as  I  am  anxious  to  get  into  the  garden  in  the 
rear,  the  famous  Boboli  Garden,  we  will  hurry  rapidly 
through  the  various  rooms  of  the  palace,  where  the 
paintings  and  statuary  you  will  find  rivalling  those 
at  the  Royal  Florentine  Gallery.  There  are  four- 
teen saloons  in  this  palace  that  deserve  our  special 
attention,  but  they  cannot  all  be  seen  at  one  visit, 
neither  will  we  have  time  to  examine  the  grandeur 
of  the  building  itself.  First  we  will  enter  the 
Saloon  of  Venus.  Here  you  are  enraptured  with  the 
frescoes  on  the  ceiling.     There  arc  Minerva,  Venus, 


hal's  travels.  115 

Hercules,  and  Cosmo;  the  Genius  of  War;  Scipio, 
Antiochus,  and  his  Mistress ;  Crispus  and  Fausta ; 
Cyrus  and  Panthea ;  Augustus  and  Cleopatra ;  Alex- 
ander; the  Mother  and  Wife  of  Darius,  etc.,  etc. 
Are  thej^  not  magnificent  ?  Now  we  enter  the  Saloon 
of  Apollo,  in  which,  as  in  the  previous  one,  we  will 
only  glance  at  the  frescoes.  Here  we  see  Apollo 
and  Cosmo  ;  Cnesar  stud^dng  his  books  as  he  walks, 
that  he  may  lose  no  time  ;  Augustus  listening  to  the 
^neid ;  Alexander  and  the  Emperor  Justinian, 
etc.  Next  the  Saloon  of  3Ia.rs,  where  we  find  Mars 
and  Cosmo;  Castor  and  Pollux;  Captives  loaded 
with  chains,  supplicating  the  Goddess  of  Victory; 
Peace  and  Abundance,  scattering  blessings.  Saloon 
of  Jupikr  :  Jupiter,  Cosmo,  Olympus,  and  Hercules; 
Minerva  planting  an  olive-tree ;  Mars  mounted  on 
Pegasus ;  Vulcan  reposing  on  his  anvil ;  Diana 
sleeping ;  Apollo  and  Mercury,  etc.  Now,  do  not 
the  magnificence  of  these  paintings  make  you  open 
your  eyes  with  wonder  ?  I  doubt  if  you  have  seen 
the  beautiful  furniture  of  these  saloons  as  you  passed 
through  them,  so  taken  up  were  you  with  the  paint- 
ings. Surely  the  furniture  deserves  notice :  those 
splendid  vases,  ornamented  clocks,  tables  of  Floren- 
tine Mosaic,  etc.,  etc.  But  as  our  time  is  limited, 
we  will  not  linger  in  the  palace.  AVewill,  however, 
pass  through  the  Gallery  Flora,  that  you  may  see 
the  celebrated  Venus  of  Cauova,  said  to  rival  even 
the  Venus  de  Medicis. 

Now  we  pass  from  the  palace  into  the  garden, 
the  first  view  of  which  makes  us  halt  and  gaze  and 


116  hal's  travels. 

wonder  with  admiration.  The  groves,  the  foun- 
tains, the  lahja'inthine  avenues,  the  cunningly 
devised  arcades  of  evergreen,  the  hundreds  of 
statues — wonderful !  wonderful !  After  wandering 
an  hour,  and  thinking  surely  we  have  seen  it  all, 
new  beauties  hurst  upon  us  that  we  knew  not  of. 
"Were  we  to  tell  our  friends  of  but  the  half  we  see 
here,  they  would  give  us  no  credit  for  veracity. 
Come  let  us  mount  up  to  the  highest  point,  (for  you 
observe  this  garden  is  on  a  hill,)  and  take  a  look 
down  at  the  city.  Is  it  not  lovely  as  a  bride  adorned 
for  her  husband?  And  then  the  villas  that  dot  the 
hills  and  vales  in  all  the  country  around — could 
man  conceive  anything  more  enchauting?  Look 
out  there  to  the  East;  there  is  Fiesole,  where 
ancient  Florence  stood  upon  the  hill.  In  the  midst 
of  it  5'ou  see  an  old  tower.  That  is  the  tower  of 
Galileo,  from  which  that  great  philosopher  watched 
the  heavens. 

Now,  contemplating  all  the  beauties  you  see  before 
and  around  you,  you  say,  Surely  these  Florentines  are 
a  great  people.  But  you  must  remember  that  all 
these  things  have  been  thousands  of  years  accumu- 
lating. It  is  a  very  ancient  city.  The  Etruscans 
were  here  indulging  in  all  the  luxuries  of  life,  while 
the  Greeks  were  still  barbarians,  and  Rome  had  yet 
no  name.  And  even  then  they  cultivated  sculp- 
ture, painting,  architecture,  and  all  the  arts,  with  a 
passion.  Ko  wonder,  then,  that  Florence  should 
now  be  the  centre  of  art. 

But  let  us  quit  the  Boboli  Garden  now,  and  take 


HAL'S    TRAVELS.  117 

a  stroll  to  the  Casine,  that  great  resort  into  which 
Florence  empties  itself  almost  every  evening.  And 
as  we  have  to  pass  by  my  restaurant,  we  will  step 
in  and  take  a  lunch.  It  is  rather  an  extensive 
establishment,  and  you  can  have  any  thing  you  call 
for ;  but,  as  3'ou  are  my  guest,  you  must  submit  to 
the  fare  that  I  submit  to  every  day.  First,  we  take 
soup — any  kind  you  like.  Xow  a  dish  of  meat  and 
vegetables — any  kind  you  are  disposed  to  order — 
and  a  small  bottle  of  wine.  "We  end  now  with  a 
small  dessert  of  fruit,  either  grapes,  figs,  pears,  or 
apples.  Being  through,  now,  we  pay  three  pauls 
(about  thirty-three  cents)  each,  and  retire.  This  is 
ni}'  dinner,  generally.  Breakfast  costs  one  paul, 
(eleven  cents,)  and  supper  the  same.  So  you  see 
living  is  not  dear  here. 

But  we  will  go  on  to  the  Casine — an  extensive 
park,  or  grove,  or  forest,  adjoining  the  city.  You 
may  imagine  that  it  now  is  Sunday  morning,  four 
o'clock ;  for  Sunday  is  the  day,  and  four  o'clock  the 
hour,  when  we  will  see  most  people.  We  will  take 
our  course  down  the  quay  along  the  banks  of  the 
Arno,  which  you  see  flows  through  the  midst  of  the 
city.  It  is  a  long  walk ;  but  then  we  will  be  in 
such  a  crowd,  and  the  way  is  so  beautiful,  that  the 
distance  will  be  forgotten.  Little  more  than  half  a 
mile  will  put  us  beyond  the  city  walls,  when  we  will 
enter  immediately  into  the  country.  But,  mercy 
on  us  !  what  a  crowd  !  what  a  rush  !  Everybody  is 
out,  and  all  dressed  up  in  their  best,  and  all,  too, 
looking  pleased  with  themselves  and  all  the  world. 


118  hal's  travels. 

And  then  look  at  the  scores  and  scores  of  brilliant 
and  gorgeous  equipages !  Did  you  ever  see  so 
many  and  such  a  variety  of  turnouts  ?  Look,  there 
is  a  four-horse  coach — four  beautiful  cream  horses. 
Don't  they  prance  !  And,  as  I  live,  here  comes  an 
eight-horse  establishment!  and  a  six-horse,  just  be- 
hind it !  A}'^ ;  don't  the  liveried  servants  flash  and 
shine !  And  then  the  ladies !  How  their  eyes 
sparkle,  and  how  their  plumes  nod !  "What  an 
astonishing  amount  of  fine  store  goods  we  see ! 
You  see  at  a  glance,  from  the  display  of  fashion, 
that  the  season  is  open  in  Florence — wide  open — 
and  the  fashionables  are  making  the  best  of  it. 
These  people  are  mostly  foreigners — only  here  for 
the  season.  Thousands  of  English,  French,  Ger- 
mans, and  Americans  come  to  this  city  to  spend 
the  winter.  Here  we  are,  at  the  city  gate  ;  and 
now,  amid  the  jam,  we  enter  the  Casine.  Is  it  not 
lovely  ?  Did  you  ever  see  nature  and  art  more  hap- 
pily blended  ?  Those  groves,  walks,  and  drives,  are 
perfectly  enchanting.  Here  we  are,  in  a  dense  crowd. 
Just  yonder  we  can  dive  into  the  bosom  of  the  forest, 
and  in  one  minute  be  beyond  the  noise  of  the  crowd. 
But  we  will  keep  Avith  the  company,  for  they  all 
seem  to  be  making  for  one  place.  Here  are  seats, 
by  the  way:  we  can  rest  occasionally.  We  will 
take  the  walk  on  the  extreme  left,  which  is  on  the 
margin  of  the  Arno.  About  two  miles  down  we 
halt,  because  everybody  else  does.  Here  are  thou- 
sands of  people  and  hundreds  of  carriages.  JSTow 
you  know  why  they  all  stopped.     A  band  of  fifty 


iial's  travels.  119 

brass  instruments  strikes  up  a  lively  air.  "Wbatl^ 
and  on  Sunday  !  Certainl}^  on  Sunday.  Now,  if  we 
were  to  tell  this  to  our  countrymen,  no  doubt  many 
of  them  would  roll  up  their  big  white  eyes  to 
heaven,  raise  their  hands,  and  thank  God  that  they 
were  not  as  other  men  !  ^lusic — brass  music — on 
Sunday  !  Horrible  !  Well,  it  may  be  a  very  hor- 
rible thing,  but  I  am  fully  persuaded  that  it  is  not 
as  horrible  as  many  other  things.  It  gives  the 
people  recreation  and  a  place  to  go  to.  Were  there 
no  such  place  to  resort  to,  about  one-third  of  these 
people  would  sleep  away  the  evening ;  another  third 
would  perhaps  spend  the  time  in  the  drinking- 
saloons,  while  the  remaining  third  would  wander 
listlessly  about  the  streets.  This  is  a  military  band, 
that  plays  every  day  in  some  part  of  the  city,  but 
only  twice  a  week  (Sundays  and  Thursdays)  in  the 
Casino.  Don't  you  think  it  a  good  institution, 
Doctor,  and  don't  you  think  that  every  city  and 
town  ought  to  have  a  band  to  play,  especially  on 
Sunday  evenings,  even  in  America?  Look  on  the 
crowd  before  us,  and  give  me  a  candid  answer.  Did 
you  ever  see  a  more  orderly,  contented  company  ? 

But  let  us  retire  from  the  crowd  a  few  moments, 
to  the  river  bank;  for  it  is  the  hour  of  sunset. 
You  have  heard  and  read  of  Italian  sunsets — of 
their  beauty  and  exceeding  gorgeousness.  You 
shall  now  see  that  all  you  have  heard  is  true. 
Behold  the  beautiful  tints,  the  rich,  golden  streaks 
that  dart  up  the  sky,  the  gorgeous  halo  upon  the 
peaks  of  the  Apennines!     Is  it  not  enchanting? — 


120  hal's  travels. 

for  all  the  world  like  a  sunset  in  Alabama ! — ^than 
which  there  can  be  nothing  more  beautiful,  except 
a  sunrise ! 

The  music  has  now  ceased,  and  the  people  are 
wending  their  way  back  to  the  city.  Let  us  join 
them ;  but  as  the  walk  may  seem  longer  in  return- 
ing, we  will  take  a  carriage — there  are  plenty  here 
waiting  to  be  hired — and  join  the  mass  of  aristo- 
cratic equipages.  Look !  look  !  Do  3^ou  see  that 
hard-featured  lady  in  that  fine  carriage?  That  is 
old  Aunt  Harriet  Beecher  Stowe,  who  is  now  spend- 
ing her  time  and  her  ill-got  money  in  Florence. 
Don't  she  cut  a  swell ! 

Here  we  are,  at  my  lodgings,  'No.  1187  Lung 
Arno.  "Walk  up  with  me,  and  we  will  ring  for  tea. 
"Walk  in.  Don't  be  surprised.  My  apartments  are 
finely,  I  may  say  gorgeously,  furnished ;  which  is 
peculiar  to  Florence.  But,  fine  as  all  this  furni- 
ture is,  I  only  pay  eight  dollars  a  month,  service 
included. 

Ay ;  here  is  Marie,  with  her  tray  of  tea  and  toast. 
Very  good;  isn't  it?  It  is  a  good  thing  to  have  a 
good  landlady  —  one  who  will  always  send  you 
enough. 

ISTow,  tea  being  over,  we  will  take  a  smoke,  after 
which,  if  you  feel  disposed,  we  will  go  out  and  take 
a  look  at  the  city  b}^  moonlight ;  for  the  moon  is 
now  near  the  full.  Here  are  some  excellent  cigars. 
Take  one.  I  will,  if  you  will  excuse  me,  fall  back 
upon  my  old  friend,  the  pipe. 

Go !     0  no !     Don't  think  of  going  yet.     It  is 


iial's  travels.  121 

quite  enrly.  Here — the  nig-ht  being  balmy,  we  will 
open  this  door,  and  take  a  seat  on  the  balcon}-, 
which,  you  see,  overlooks  the  Arno.  And  here, 
while  we  smoke,  I  will  briefly  tell  you  my  plans  for 
the  future.  For  the  present  I  am  trying  to  conquer 
a  language  wliieli  has  thus  far  proved  too  hard  for 
me,  but  which  I  intend  to  master,  before  I  am  done 
with  it.  I  have  an  excellent  lady  teacher.  "Well, 
after  I  have  done  that,  I  shall  visit  Rome  and  Naples ; 
after  which  I  shall  start  for  Egypt  and  the  Holy 
Land.  There  is  a  company  of  Americans  here 
now,  who  start  in  January.  I  have  promised  to  go 
with  them.  This  is  my  present  design,  but  lazi- 
ness, and  a  love  of  Florence,  may  prevent  my 
going. 

But,  Doctor,  with  all  the  beauty  of  Florence,  and 
all  the  balminess  of  the  Italian  climate,  and  all  the 
poetical  associations  of  the  Arno  and  the  Apennines, 
I  would  rather  drink  from  the  big  spring  in  Ilunts- 
ville,  and  gaze  upon  Monte  Sano,  than  to  enjoy  all 
these  things.  It  would  give  me  more  pleasure  now 
to  take  by  the  hand  an  old  Alabama  or  Tennessee 
friend,  than  to  be  perched  upon  the  pinnacle  of  the 
tallest  pyramid  of  Egypt. 

But  you  say  you  must  go,  so  I  will  not  detain  you. 
Farewell.     God  bless  you. 

Consider  me  ever  yours  till  further  advised. 

Hal. 


122  hal's   travels. 


LETTER    XIV. 

FLORENCE. 

"We  are  at  leugth  having  a  taste  of  winter  in 
Florence.  The  distant  peaks  of  the  Apennines  are 
white  with  snow,  and  the  tramontane  blasts  come 
whirling  and  dancing  and  eddying  along  the  streets 
and  around  the  corners,  in  the  most  fantastic,  frolic- 
some, and  cutting  manner.  This  being  the  state  of 
the  weather,  your  correspondent  has  betaken  him- 
self to  his  domicile,  and  is  now  snugly  housed  before 
a  sparkling  wood  tire,  (a  small  one,  however,  for 
wood  is  very  dear  here,)  and  is  just  in  the  humor  to 
bore  you  with  a  most  unmercifully  dull  letter,  the 
which  you  will  find  to  be  a  hotch-potch  of  stuff 
thrown  together  at  random,  and  in  the  which,  if 
you  do  not  find  any  thing  wise,  you  will  find  plenty 
that  is  o^Aerwise. 

Perhaps  you  would  like  to  take  a  look  at  this 
lovely  city  and  its  surroundings  this  morning.  If 
so,  you  may  for  the  time  consider  yourself  with 
your  correspondent,  and  he  will  take  much  pleasure 
in  conducting  you  to  a  point  from  which  you  can 
have  a  view  that  will  certainly  charm  you.  The 
view  we  will  take  this  morning  will  be  a  general 


hal's  travels.  123 

one,  for  it  would  require  a  month,  if  not  two 
months,  to  see  the  beauties  of  the  city  in  detail. 
We  will  go  up  to  the  ancient  hill  and  city  of  Fiesole, 
five  miles  distant,  but  which  indeed  looks  to  be  only 
as  many  hundred  yards.  In  fact,  so  bold  and  strik- 
ing is  it,  that  it  seems  to  almost  jut  up  against  the 
city  walls.  From  that  eminence  you  will  have  a 
view  which  I  venture  to  say  is  not  surpassed  in  the 
world.  But  in  our  journey  to  Fiesole,  we  will  no- 
tice a  few  things  along  the  way.  As  the  wind 
blows  cold,  (though  the  sky  is  clear,  and  the  sun 
shines  most  brilliantly,)  we  will  drop  in  here  at 
"Cafe  Doncy"  and  take  a  cup  of  strong  coffee — a 
very  fashionable  drink  here,  and  more  invigorating 
than  wine  or  strong  drink.  This,  you  observe,  is 
the  coffee  house  of  Florence.  Here  you  may  see 
people  from  almost  every  nation  under  the  sun,  at 
all  hours  of  the  day.  Those  waiters,  you  see,  ad- 
dress every  man  in  his  own  tongue,  whether  he  be 
English,  French,  German,  Turk,  or  Spaniard.  It 
is  passing  strange  that  men  in  such  humble  posi- 
tions should  be  able  to  speak  so  many  languages — 
when  with  us  a  man  who  can  speak  two  or  three 
languages  fluently  is  considered  quite  a  scholar. 

Now  here  you  see  dozens  of  the  Florentine 
"flower  girls,"  who  resort  here  daily  with  their 
baskets  of  flowers,  to  furnish  strangers  with  little 
bouquets.  They  are  very  bold,  you  see,  and  if  you 
will  not  buy  a  bouquet,  they  thrust  it  upon  you  any- 
how, pay  or  no  pay,  and  depend  upon  your  gene- 
rosity at  some  future  time.     You  have   no   doubt 


124  HAL'S    TRAVELS. 

heard  of  these  flower  girls  before — have  read  of 
them  often — and  have  perhaps  seen  pictures  of  them. 
They  are  very  pretty  creatures — in  pictures  !  You 
are  disappointed  when  j'Ou  see  them  face  to  face. 
The  average  age  of  them  you  will  set  down  at  not 
less  than  thirty-five  years.  Now  here  comes  one 
with  her  great  Leghorn  hat,  the  broad  brim  flaringly 
thrown  back,  exposing  an  enormous  expanse  of  face, 
about  the  color  of  new  leather.  Another  follows 
in  her  wake,  with  pinched  features,  of  a  putty  color. 
And  there  is  one  whose  great  fat  cheeks  forcibly 
remind  you  of  two  prodigious  beef-steaks.  I  know 
you  are  amused  when  you  observe  the  coy  glances 
and  assumed  modest  shyness  of  these  flower  girls — 
or  wenches,  rather. 

But  here  is  another  scene  of  a  difterent  kind,  and, 
if  I  judge  you  rightly,  it  will  touch  you  in  a  tender 
place.  See  that  little  tattered  girl  with  pinched, 
sharp  features,  as  if  age  had  already  come  upon  her, 
leading  her  poor  blind  father,  and  modestly  holding 
out  her  little  withered  hand,  asking  alms.  Is  it  not 
a  pitiable  sight?  "Here,  child,  here  are  some  sous 
for  you.  Go  buy  the  poor  old  man  a  loaf  of  bread, 
and  then  lead  him  to  the  sunny  side  of  the  great 
palace,  where  I  often  see  you  with  him,  where  he 
may  eat  his  scanty  meal  in  peace,  warmed  by  the 
gentle  rays  of  the  sun,  which  shines  as  benignly 
upon  the  poor  as  upon  the  rich."  And  here  is  a 
poor  old  crippled  woman.  She  too  must  have  her 
breakfast.  Two  cents  will  buy  her  a  loaf  of  bread, 
and  that  will  appease  her  gnawing  hunger.     AVho 


iial's   travels.  125 

would  refuse  to  give  it  to  her?  To  give  a  mite  to 
these  poor  hungry  creatures  is  a  luxury,  a  balm  to 
the  heart  of  the  benevolent.  It  is  better  to  bleed 
the  pocket  than  the  heart. 

Go,  old  grandmother,  and  get  your  breakfast.  As 
to  these  sturdy  wretches  who  lounge  about  the 
streets  and  beg,  I  would  rather  give  them  kicks 
than  coppers. 

Now  we  will  proceed  towards  Fiesole,  but  will 
not  have  time  to  stop  on  the  way  to  see  the  many 
beautiful  sights.  "We  will  stop  a  moment,  however, 
in  the  square  of  the  Duomo,  and  look  at  the  great 
Cathedral,  the  Bell  tower,  and  the  Baptistry.  No 
man  can  pass  such  a  place  as  this  without  pausing, 
for  the  architectural  beauty  here  displayed  would 
charm  a  Hottentot.  Let  us  approach  the  Baptistry. 
It  is,  you  see,  a  very  grand  building,  of  octagonal 
form,  and,  like  the  Cathedral  and  Campanile,  is 
built  of  various-colored  marble — red,  white  and 
black,  checked  off  in  chess-board  style.  We  will 
not  enter,  but  just  look  at  the  three  enormous  doors 
cast  in  bronze,  the  wonder  of  all  who  behold  them. 
These  doors,  or  gates,  are  exquisitely  wrought  in 
basso-relievo,  representing  various  Scripture  scenes, 
from  the  creation  on  down  to  the  Christian  era. 
The  sculpture  is  as  elaborate  as  beautiful.  The 
great  artist  Michael  Angelo  said  of  them  : 

"Tlio  gates  arc  so  miraculously  -wrougbt, 

That  they  might  serve  to  be  the  gates  of  heaven." 

The  interior  of  this  Baptistry,  like  many  of  the 


126  hal's   travels. 

palaces  and  cliurclies  of  Florence,  is  enriched  with 
works  of  art  by  the  great  fathers  of  Italian  painting 
and  sculpture — Cimabue,  Giotto  Memmi,  Michael 
Angelo,  and  others.  But  we  cannot  see  them  to- 
day. 

We  will  pass  out  of  the  city  through  the  gate  of 
St.  Gallo,  and  proceed  on  our  excursion.  Those 
villas  and  the  richly-cultivated  and  terraced  gardens 
along  the  way  are  perfectly  charming,  are  they  not  ? 
I  know  you  would  like  to  stop  and  see  all  of  them, 
but  you  must  not.  Here  we  are  at  the  beginning  of 
the  ascent.  See  what  labor  was  required  to  build 
this  road.  Like  every  thing  else  in  Europe,  it  is 
built  to  last  for  ever — no  temporary  work  in  this 
country.  The  mountain  is  steep,  but  the  road  is  not, 
so  zig-zag  and  serpentine  is  its  course.  It  seems 
but  a  step  from  "  zig"  to  "  zag,"  but  to  follow  the 
road  it  is  hundreds  of  yards. 

And  here  we  are  at  the  summit,  the  spot  from 
which  many  a  time  and  oft  the  great  Galileo  gazed 
out  upon  the  heavens,  and  viewed  the  caverns,  cra- 
ters, and  volcanoes  in  the  moon ;  the  place  to  which 
Catiline  fled  from  Rome,  and  fixed  his  habitation 
for  a  season  ;  where  the  immortal  Dante  mused  and 
wrote  poetry ;  and  where  stood  the  favorite  villa  of 
Lorenzo  the  Magnificent.  Yes,  here  we  are  upon 
classic  ground,  overlooking  scenery  that  no  poet  can 
describe,  nor  painter  delineate.  Turn  and  cast  your 
eye  adown  the  lovely  valley  of  the  Arno.  See  that 
beautiful  stream  gliding  between  richly-embowered 
banks,  and  glistening  in  the  sunlight  like  a  thread 


iial's   travels.  127 

of  silver.  Sec  the  thousands  of  white  villas  that 
peep  from  out  the  gorgeous  bowers  of  orange,  palm, 
and  olive  on  either  slope  that  bounds  the  valle}^ ; 
and  those  terraced  gardens,  flowery  walks,  stately 
avenues,  and  green  meadows  !  Can  they  be  sur- 
passed? And  sec  again,  away  bej^ond,  towering 
peaks  of  Apennine,  robed  in  virgin  snow,  looking 
benignly  down  upon  the  beauties  at  her  feet,  like 
the  lioary  patriarch  smiling  upon  his  children.  And 
there  lies  the  cit}'  at  our  feet,  basking  in  the  noon- 
day sun,  as  mild  and  placid  as  a  sleeping  infant. 

JNTow  turn  your  raptured  gaze  away  over  to  the 
east,  toward  the  lovely  Vallambrosa,  in  whose  calm 
retreats  the  gods  did  sport  in* former  times.  Sweet 
Vallambrosa,  whose  mja'tle  groves  and  orange 
bowers  drop  milk  and  honey  !  where  flowers  grow, 
whose  lovely  tints  are  painted  by  the  rays  of  light 
direct  from  heaven ;  where  crystal  streams  and 
fountains  play,  and  Naiads  lave  from  morn  till  eve, 
and  shepherds  pipe  their  silvery  notes,  and  maidens 
dance  the  livelong  day;  where  fairies  meet,  and 
sport,  and  dance  upon  the  dew}^  grass  where  moon- 
beams play  !  0  lovely  valley  !  How  beautiful  thy 
groves,  how  green  thy  charming  meadows,  how  en- 
chanting thj'  nooks  and  dells,  and  how  sweet  and 
pleasant  thy  limpid  waters  !  But  yet  and  yet,  there's 
something  wanting.  With  all  the  gorgeous  loveli- 
ness and  all  the  charms  of  Val  de  I'Arno,  methinks 
one  look  from  Monte  Sana's  brow,  or  from  the  rugged 
heights  of  brave  old  Cumberland,  would  be  to  me 
more  lovely  still.     And  one  sweet  draught  from  the 


128  HAL'S    TRAVELS. 

great  fount  that  gushes  from  beneath  the  cliff  that 
overhangs  the  Huntsville  spring,  would  be  to  me 
more  grateful  still  than  waters  of  Hiperian  springs, 
of  which  the  poets  sing.     And — and 

Tut !  tut !  tut !  AVhere  in  the  world  am  I  running 
to  ?  I  did  not  bring  you  up  on  this  mount  to  spout 
poetically  to  you,  but  to  show  you  the  scenery. 
But,  my  dear  sir,  you  must  excuse  me.  You  see 
my  muse  has  been  running  at  large  for  some  time, 
feeding  and  fattening  in  the  rich  ambrosial  meadows 
of  Parnassus,  and,  like  a  colt  just  taken  oS  the  grass, 
it  broke  off  into  a  canter  before  I  was  aware  of  it. 
But  now  we  Avill  jog  along  soberly  back  to  the  city. 
And  now  I  suppose  after  what  you  have  seen  to-day 
you  are  willing  to  admit  that  if  Paradise  was  more 
beautiful,  our  first  parents  did  sin  grievously  when 
they  forfeited  their  title  to  it  for  a  momentary  grati- 
fication of  the  appetite.     I  think  so. 

Next  Sunday  is  to  be  a  gala  day  here.  The  newly- 
elected  Governor,  Prince  Carignanie,  is  expected  to 
arrive  here  from  Turin,  and  great  preparations  are 
being  made  to  receive  him.  A  grand  military  dis- 
play will  take  place  in  the  Casine,  where  an  im- 
mense amphitheatre  of  seats  is  Iteing  erected,  and 
tents  or  canopies  of  the  most  gorgeous  description 
are  being  put  up,  in  one  of  which  is  a  great  altar, 
tricked  ofli"  similar  to  those  in  churches.  This  altar 
is  erected  for  the  Archbishop  of  Tuscany,  who  upon 
that  occasion  will  go  through  the  ceremony  of  bless- 
ing the  banners  and  arms  of  Tuscany,  for  we  do  not 
know  what  day  they  will  have  to  go  into  battle 


hal's  travels.  129 

against  liis  Higli-Mightiiicss  the  Pope.  His  Holi- 
ness is  mustering  his  forces  lor  the  purpose  of  re- 
covering his  last  temporal  power  in  those  States 
which  have  deserted  him.  I  presume  he  has  blessed 
his  arms  and  banners  too,  which  blessing,  if  there 
be  any  virtue  in  either,  is  certainly  better  than  tliat 
of  the  Archbishop  of  Tuscany,  as  the  latter  holds 
or  obtained  his  authority  from  the  former.  Guess, 
though,  one  is  about  as  good  as  the  other,  and 
equally  ridiculous. 

On  Monday  night  there  is  to  be  a  grand  ball  given 
to  the  Prince  and  to  the  members  of  the  House  of 
Delegates  who  chose  him  to  reign  over  Tuscany. 
Tlie  people  are  quite  enthused,  and  nothing  is  talked 
of  but  the  coming  of  Prince  Carignanie,  who  is  a 
nephew  of  Victor  Emanuel,  King  of  Sardinia.  It 
is  said  that  the  ball  will  be  a  most  brilliant  aflair,  to 
come  off  in  the  palace  prepared  for  the  Prince's  re- 
ception. 

Now  to  what  good  fortune,  or  to  whom,  your 
humble  correspondant  is  indebted  for  an  invitation 
to  said  ball,  he  knows  not.  Certain  it  is,  he  has  got 
one.  Last  night,  while  quietly  seated  in  my  room, 
heels  reared  up  on  the  mantel,  musing  and  ponder- 
ing upon  time  gone  by,  and  joys  departed,  alas !  never 
to  return,  I  was  roused  b}^  a  loud  rap  at  my  door, 
when  who  should  enter  but  a  military-looking  gen- 
tleman with  a  shining  star  upon  his  shoulder,  and 
ever  so  many  golden  medals  dangling  about  his 
bosom.  Chapeau  in  hand,  he  asked  if  1  were  "  Sig- 
norHal."  Upon  being  answered  in  the  affirmative, 
5 


130  iial's  travels. 

lie  drew  fortli  a  piece  of  pasteboard  about  four  by 
six  inches,  deposited  it  iu  my  baud,  and  departed 
before  I  bad  time  to  ask  any  questions,  or  even  to 
find  out  wbo  be  was.  I  knew  it  was  not  a  chal- 
lenge, or  be  would  bave  waited  for  an  answer  ;  be- 
sides, challenges  are  never  printed,  except  in  Cali- 
fornia. There,  I  believe,  they  keep  blank  challenges 
on  baud  ready  to  be  filled  up  at  a  moment's  notice. 
After  trying  for  some  time  to  read  the  document,  I 
gave  it  up  in  despair.  Summoned  m}^  landlady  and 
her  daughter,  each  of  whom  can  speak  English  a 
little  better  than  I  can  speak  Italian.  By  putting 
our  three  beads  together,  we  made  out  that  it  was  an 
earnest  request  that  "Signor  Hal"  would  make  his 
personal  appearance  at  "  Villa  del  Poggio  Imperi- 
ale,"  on  the  evening  of  the  21st  inst.,  at  a  "grande 
Festa  di  Ballo." 

Upon  reading  this  card  I  felt  considerably  lifted 
up,  and  my  landlady  was  in  ecstasies.  She  regarded 
it  as  an  honor  to  her  house,  that  one  of  her  lodgers 
should  be  invited  to  a  ball  at  the  Imperial  Palace. 
She  says  I  must  go  ;  but,  between  you  and  me,  I  am 
in  the  condition  of  poor  Flora  McFlimsey — I  've  got 
"  nothing  to  wear,"  Still  the  old  lady  earnestly  as- 
sures me  that  I  must  go,  and  that  she  will  see  that  I 
am  properly  rigged  out.  I  shall  certainly  not  buy  a 
suit  for  the  occasion.  If  I  do  go,  (and  I  think  it 
likely  I  shall,)  I  will  write  you  an  account  of  the 
proceedings.  How  I  came  to  get  a  ticket  is  a  mys- 
tery to  m.e,  for  I  know  that  I  have  acted  quietly  and 
modestly  since  my  sojourn  in  Florence.     But  it  is 


hal's  travels.  131 

hard  for  a  man  to  hide  his  candle  under  a  hushcL 
Genius,  like  murder,  Avill  out. 

I  guess  you  think  it  about  time  for  this  document 
to  come  to  a  close — that  it  is  like  the  old  lady's 
breakfast — "plenty  of  it,  such  as  it  is,"  but  not  like 
her  breakfast  in  another  respect,  which  she  said  was 
"good  enough,  what  there  was  of  it."  I  have  kept 
the  promise,  however,  that  I  made  in  the  outset. 

You  must  excuse  me  for  neglecting  to  conduct 
you  into  any  of  the  Art  Galleries  or  Studios  to-day. 
I  will  try  to  do  so  at  some  future  time.  We  will 
take  a  peep  into  the  studios  of  Powers,  Hart,  and 
Gault,  the  American  Sculptors,  some  of  these  days, 
when  we  can  see  busts  and  statues  of  most  of  the 
great  names  of  America — "Washington,  Franklin, 
Jefferson,  Clay,  Calhoun,  Webster,  etc.,  etc!  In 
either  of  them  you  would  imagine  3-ourself  much 
less  than  five  thousand  miles  from  home. 

Will  sail  from  E^aples  for  Egypt  about  the  1st  of 
Januar}^  It  is  quite  an  undertaking,  for  the  great 
desert  that  is  to  be  crossed  is  a  more  formidable 
obstacle  than  the  Atlantic.  You  shall  hear  from 
me  occasionally  along  the  way. 

Think  I  will  spend  the  Christmas  holidays  at 
Rome.  Yours,  etc., 

Hal. 


132  hal's  travels. 


LETTER  XV. 

FLORENCE. 

This  is  a  cold  raw  day  in  Florence.  Angry  clouds 
obscure  the  sun.  The  winds  career  and  dash  along 
the  streets,  chilling  the  blood,  and  taking  unwarrant- 
able liberties  with  mantillas  and  petticoats.  Pedes- 
trians hurry  along,  closely  muffled  in  shawls,  cloaks, 
and  furs;  and  beggars  are  active.  Your  corre- 
spondent is  again  hovering  over  his  little  fire,  and 
but  for  the  consolations  of  his  old  and  faithful  friend, 
the  pipe,  would  be  enjoying  a  most  luxurious  spell 
of  the  blues.  Thinks  seriously  of  migrating  to  a 
milder  climate — IsTaples  perhaps.  Florence  is  too 
near  the  snow-covered  mountains  for  a  winter  resi- 
dence. 

I  mentioned  in  my  last  letter  that  the  Tuscan 
House  of  Delegates  had  elected  a  Governor  to  reign 
over  them — Prince  Carignanie — and  that  great  pre- 
parations were  making  here  for  his  reception.  He 
did  not  come  ;  but  a  message  came  instead,  saying 
that  Emperor  Napoleon  disapproved  of  the  proceed- 
ings, and  preferred  that  the  Tuscans  should  do 
without  a  ruler  until  a  Congress  of  Nations  should 
decide  whether  they  should  choose  their  own  ruler, 


ual's   travels.  133 

or  the  former  Austrian  Grand  Dnkc  (expelled  by 
the  late  revolution)  should  be  thrust  back  upon 
them  I  This  message  made  the  proud  Florentines 
bite  their  lips  with  rage  and  disappointment,  and 
many,  no  doubt,  cursed  the  French  Emperor  in  their 
hearts,  but  gratitude  for  his  j)ast  friendship  kept 
them  from  openly  denouncing  the  usurpation. 

But  notwithstanding  the  disappointment,  the  fes- 
tivities which  were  being  prepared  for  the  Prince's 
reception"  were  carried  out.  The  arms  and  banners 
of  Tuscany  were  blessed  by  the  Bishops,  and  an  ad- 
dress was  delivered,  in  which  it  was  announced  that 
the  Tuscans  would  submit  to  no  ruler,  except  one 
of  their  own  choosing ;  that  the  Grand  Duke  should 
never  again  enter  Florence,  nor  should  the  Pope 
have  temporal  dominion  over  them.  This  announce- 
ment was  received  with  universal  applause  by  the 
immense  gathering  of  people — especially  the  troops 
— the  National  Guard. 

The  grand  ball  did  come  off  at  "Villa  de  Poggio 
Imperiale,"  and  your  correspondent  was  there  !  If 
my  pen  did  not  shrink  abashed  from  the  attempt,  I 
would  try  to  picture  to  you  the  grandeur  and  beauty 
— the  glare  and  glitter — displayed  on  that  occasion. 
The  palace  is  one  of  the  finest  in  Italy ;  stands  upon 
a  beautiful  eminence  just  one  mile  from  the  city 
gate,  and  is  approached  by  a  broad  avenue,  richly 
bordered  with  trees  and  flowers.  On  the  night  of 
the  ball,  this  avenue  was  brilliantly  illuminated 
with  thousands  of  lamps,  all  the  way  from  the  city 
to  the  palace.     The  broad  front  of  the  palace  was 


134  hal's   travels. 

studded  witli  various-colored  lights,  displaying  fes- 
toons, and  many  rich  and  beautiful  devices.  I 
thought  nothing  could  be  more  enchanting  than 
the  fairy-like  scene  presented  on  approaching  the 
palace.  But  upon  entering,  I  was  struck  dumb  with 
admiration.  It  was  too  much  for  a  plain  simple 
republican,  all  the  way  from  the  wilds  of  America. 
'No  expense  had  been  spared  in  fitting  up  and  deco- 
rating the  splendid  halls  for  the  occasion.  Every 
thing  was  as  fine  as  fine  could  be.  And  then  the 
magnificent  costumes  of  the  nobility  were  dazzling. 
Nov  were  the  gentry  behind  the  nobility  in  brilliancy 
of  dress.  In  short,  among  the  ladies,  there  was 
nothing  in  dress  that  was  not  of  the  finest.  There 
were  many  English  present,  and  a  few  Americans. 
I  think  the  finest-looking  lady  there  was  an  Ameri- 
can— a  Miss  H ,  of  E".  Y.     To  my  taste  she  was 

decidedly  the  belle  of  the  festival.  Murmurs  of  ad- 
miration arose  wherever  she  went.  She  was  dressed 
with  more  simplicity  than  au}^  lady  there,  but  sim- 
plicity was  adornment  to  her.  I  am  sorry  to  say 
that  one  or  two  of  our  American  ladies  were  so  muck 
dressed,  that  many  lips  were  curled  derisively,  and 
many  sly  nods  and  winks  were  indulged,  as  they 
swept  haughtily  through  the  saloons. 

There  were  from  two  to  three  thousand  persons 
present.  The  music  was  enchanting — but  nothing 
seemed  more  musical  or  delightful  to  me  than  the 
conversation  of  the  Italian  ladies.  The  language  is 
soft  and  sweet — every  word  ending  with  a  vowel — 
with  a  stress  upon  the  syllable  that  gives  the  word 


II  A  L  '  S     TRAVELS.  135 

most  niiisic.  Kothing  can  be  more  pleasing  to  the 
ear  than  a  conversation  between  two  Italian  ladies 
— refined,  elegant  Florentine  ladies.  Their  dancing 
is  graceful  and  beautiful;  and  although  generally 
-slender  and  delicate,  they  never  seem  to  tire.  I 
think  there  were  some  who  danced  the  entire  night, 
scarcely  missing  a  set.  Princess  Strozzi  was  con- 
sidered the  most  elegant  dancer,  and  lookers  on 
were  enchanted  with  her  graceful  movements,  as 
well  as  her  elegant  figure.  As  she  moved  through 
the  quadrille, 

"Her  feet  beneath  her  petticoat, 
Like  little  mice,  stole  iu  and  out, 
As  if  they  feared  the  light." 

The  dance  continued  until  the  gray  streaks  of 
the  morning  were  visible  in  the  east,  when  all  re- 
tired to  their  homes  and  to  their  virtuous  couches  to 
dream  of  beauty. 

I  think  I  mentioned  to  you  in  my  last  letter  that 
there  was  some  doubt  about  my  going  to  the  ball — 
that,  like  poor  Flora  McFlimsey,  I  had  "  nothing  to 
wear."  My  landlady,  I  think  I  told  you,  was  de- 
termined I  should  go ;  that  she  was  ambitious  to  have 
her  house  represented  there,  and  therefore  under- 
took the  business  of  seeing  that  I  was  properly  fitted 
out  for  the  occasion.  Regarding  the  honor  of  her 
establishment  as  being  at  stake,  she  rested  not  until 
she  borrowed  a  dress-coat  that  fitted  me  to  a  T,  and 
an  embroidered  white  satin  vest.  Xext,  she  rum- 
maged among  drawers  until  she  found  an  elegantly 


136  hal's  travels. 

embroidered  white  cravat,  of  an  antique  pattern, 
which  had  belonged  to  her  dear,  but  long  since  de- 
parted husband.  A  hair-dresser  was  sent  to  my 
room  with  his  instruments,  (curling-tongs  among 
them,)  with  instructions  to  do  my  head  up  a  la  mode. 
My  landlady's  daughter,  too,  sent  me  ever  so  many 
bottles  of  oils  and  sweet-smelling  essences.  The 
maid  was  sent  back  to  the  kitchen  the  third  time 
before  she  gave  my  boots  a  sufficient  polish  to  please 
her  mistress.  Finally,  about  thirteen  minutes  past 
nine  o'clock  I  was  pronounced  presentable,  and  ad- 
mitted to  the  parlor,  where  the  boarders  were  all 
assembled  to  see  me  oif.  My  appearance  was  pro- 
nounced unexceptionable,  except  that  one  of  the 
company  thought  my  white  kids  a  little  too  tight — 
that  they  made  the  hands  present  rather  a  "  strut- 
ting" appearance.  At  half-past  nine  I  set  out,  and  a 
little  after  ten  was  ushered  into  the  great  saloon  of 
the  "Villa  del  Poggio  Imperiale,"  where  I  trust  I 
did  no  discredit  to  my  honorable  landlady,  or  her 
excellent  house.  The  "Americana"  has  been  quite 
a  lion  in  the  house  since  the  ball,  and  is  regarded 
as  no  small  potatoes. 

After  all  my  dreams  and  fond  anticipations,  I  fear 
my  design  to  go  to  Egypt  and  the  Holy  Land  will 
be  frustrated;  and  if  so,  I  shall  lay  the  whole  blame 
at  the  door  of  that  arch  politician,  Stephen  A. 
Douglas.  Yes,  if  you  do  not  get  any  letter  from 
your  humble  servant  in  those  far-off  regions,  you 
may  blame  the  "Little  Giant."  ITow,  you  may 
think  this  strange,  that  Douglas,  five  thousand  miles 


ual's   travels.  137 

away,  should  have  any  iuliueucc  upon  my  travels. 
But  it  is  so.  Not  by  any  thing  he  is  doing  now, 
but  by  wliat  he  did  several  years  ago.  If  he  had 
not  introduced  the  Kansas  Nebraska  Bill,  the  great 
Republican  party  would  never  have  had  an  exist- 
ence. If  the  Black  Republican  party  had  never 
come  into  being,  there  would  never  have  been  any 
border  warfare  in  Kansas.  Had  there  never  been  a 
border  war  in  Kansas,  Captain  Brown,  the  notorious 
"  Ossawattomie,"  would  have  lived  and  died  un- 
known. Had  he  lived  and  died  unknown,  the 
Harper's  Ferry  rebellion  would  never  have  oc- 
curred, nor  would  he  have  been  executed  as 
a  traitor  and  an  insurrectionist.  And  if  that  rebel- 
lion and  execution  had  never  occurred,  I  should 
have  gone  on  my  way  rejoicing  to  Jerusalem.  But, 
strange  to  say,  all  these  things  may  prevent  my 
going.  And  how?  you  may  ask.  I'll  tell  you. 
You  remember  I  told  you  in  a  former  letter  that  I 
was  going  with  a  part}-  of  Americans.  It  happens 
that  this  party  is  composed  of  live  Yankees,  the 
chief  of  which  is  one  of  the  "immortal  three  thou- 
sand" New  England  clergy.  This  divine  and  my- 
self have  freely  and  frequently  discussed  the  slavery 
question.  Thought  I  had  him  almost  converted 
from  the  error  of  his  way,  until  the  news  of  the 
Harper's  Ferry  insurrection  reached  us.  Since  that 
we  have  had  two  or  three  stift'  quarrels.  He  argues 
for  Brown,  and  contends  that  he  was  deranged — had 
gone  crazy  on  account  of  his  troubles  in  Kansas,  and 
that,  instead  of  being  hung,  he  ought  to  be  confined 


138  HALS     TRAVELS. 

in  an  asylum.  I  contend  he  ought  to  be  hung  a  little 
anyhow — an  hour  or  so — even  if  he  is  deranged, 
that  his  execution  may  have  a  salutary  effect  upon 
others  who  are  verging  towards  the  same  species  of 
insanity.  And  upon  one  or  two  occasions,  when 
goaded  pretty  severely,  I  have  insinuated  that  this 
same  parson  would  not  have  for  to  go  to  be  as  crazy 
as  old  Brown.  He  resents  the  insinuation  with  dig- 
nity, but  still  I  have  my  opinion.  I  think  the  par- 
son has  an  idea  that  he  will  go  to  old  "Aunt  Harriet 
Beecher  Stowe"  when  he  dies,  and  this  is  another 
source  of  rupture  between  us.  So  you  see  it  is 
doubtful  about  our  agreeing  well  enough  to  make 
such  a  long  journey  together.  If  we  do  not,  just 
lay  the  blame  to  Douglas.  I  must,  however,  do  the 
parson  justice  to  say  that  he  is  a  very  pleasant  and 
agreeable  man  in  every  other  respect  but  upon  the 
slavery  question.  We  meet  almost  every  day  in  the 
most  friendly  manner,  but  generally  part  in  a  huff. 
The  rest  of  the  party  are  moderate  enough.  There 
are  four  ladies  and  four  gentlemen  ;  three  of  them 
are  preachers. 

I  must  relate  to  you  a  little  adventure  I  had  the 
other  day  at  my  restaurant,  at  dinner.  Sitting  op- 
posite me  at  the  table  was  a  very  prim,  nice-looking 
Englishnian,  and,  what  is  unusual  for  an  Englishman, 
he  seemed  to  be  of  amost  social  and  lively'  disposition. 
Entering  into  conversation,  I  found  him  sprightly 
and  agreeable,  showing  by  his  manners  and  conver- 
sation that  he  had  evidently  had  access  to  good  so- 
ciety, and  was  not  altogether  unacquainted  with 


ual's  travels.  130 

books  and  newspapers ;  boasted  that  he  was  a 
regular  reader  of  the  London  Post,  the  Palmerston 
mouthpiece.  I  was  pleased  w^ith  my  new  acquaint- 
ance, so  dilterent  was  lie  from  the  great  bulk  of 
English  travellers,  who,  as  a  general  thing,  are 
afraid  to  be  social,  fearing  that  they  will  be  regarded 
as  common  stock,  or,  at  least,  something  below  the 
aristocracy  and  gentry.  They  go  upon  the  principle 
that  "familiarity  breeds  contempt,"  and  they  are 
perseveriugl}'  resolved  not  to  be  contemptible.  But 
here  I  had  found  one  who  feared  no  contempt  on  this 
score.  Was  extremely  agreeable,  but,  like  the  rest 
of  his  tribe,  I  found  him  pugnaciously  patriotic. 
"We  discussed  the  San  Juan  difficulty,  and  other 
questions  likely  to  bring  about  a  rupture  between  our 
respective  countries.  He  talked  fair  and  reasonable 
enough  for  an  Englishman,  and  finally  proposed 
good-naturedly  to  bet  me  a  bottle  of  wine — "  spark- 
ling Moselle" — that  if  there  ever  should  be  a  war 
between  Uncle  Sam  and  John  Bull,  the  former 
would  come  out  second  best;  and,  to  show  that  he 
was  in  earnest,  proposed  to  buy  the  wine  then  and 
there,  with  the  understanding  that  if  the  fight  should 
ever  occur,  and  I  should  lose,  I  should  pay  him  two 
bottles,  provided  wc  should  meet  again.  I  agreed 
to  the  proposition,  and  he  bought  the  wine,  over 
which  we  cracked  several  jokes,  and  parted  the  best 
of  friends.  I  came  to  my  room  and  pondered  over 
the  matter,  and  came  to  the  conclusion  that  I  had 
not  done  the  English  justice  in  concluding  that  they 
were  such  a  cold,  selfish  people.     Since  that  time  I 


140  HAL'S    TRAVELS. 

have  tried  to  find  my  new  friend  often,  for  I  felt 
anxious  to  perpetuate  an  acquaintance  which  pro- 
mised to  be  so  agreeable.  I  failed  to  meet  with  him. 
I  got  a  glimpse  of  him  yesterday  evening,  however, 
in  the  Casine,  dressed  in  the  gaudy  livery  of  a  foot- 
man, behind  his  master's  carnage  ! 

This  letter  being  long  enough,  and  as  dry  as  it  is 
long,  I  shall  close  it.     Yours,  etc., 

Hal. 


hal's   travels.  141 


LETTER  XVI. 

FLORENCE    TO     ROME. 

After  haAing  made  up  my  mind  to  leave 
Florence  a  week  or  two  ago,  I  took  occasion  to 
run  round  and  take  a  last,  long,  lingering  look  at 
many  of  its  beauties,  before  doing  so.  I  mounted 
the  great  dome  of  its  Cathedral,  (the  largest  Cathe- 
dral dome  in  the  world,)  and  took  a  last  look  at  the 
city  and  its  beautiful  environs.  "Went  again  through 
the  magniticent  galleries  of  the  Pitti  Palace,  and 
through  the  Boboli  Gardens,  the  splendid  galleries 
of  Ufizzi  Palace,  the  Palazzo  Yecchio,  and  also 
many  of  the  noble  churches.  Went  again  to  take 
a  farewell  look  at  the  statuary  of  our  American 
artists,  Messrs.  Powers,  Gault,  and  Hart,  and  then 
with  an  effort  tore  myself  away  from  "  Florence  the 
Fair." 

We  started  on  Thursda}-  morning  last — many 
Americans  of  us  together — about  twenty-tive.  The 
morning  was  most  lovely,  clear,  bright,  and  frosty ; 
the  air  perfectly  calm.  The  sun  rose  just  as  the 
train  glided  out  of  the  depot,  and  took  its  way  down 
the  pretty  valley  of  the  Arno  for  Leghorn.  The 
tops  of  the  mountains  around  us  were  white  with 


142  hal's   travels. 

snow,  and  looked  most  beautiful  in  the  morning 
sun.  Three  hours  brought  us  to  the  ancient  city  of 
Pisa,  which  is  indeed  no  mean  city.  Here  we 
stopped  a  few  hours,  to  see  the  fine  Cathedral,  the 
Leaning  Tower,  and  the  Campo  Santo,  and  to  make 
the  acquaintance  of  one  hundred  and  seventeen 
beggars,  more  or  less.  Took  the  cars  at  two  o'clock, 
and  in  an  hour  more  were  landed  at  the  Leghorn 
depot.  Ran  a  narrow  risk  of  being  torn  into  several 
pieces  by  a  horde  of  hack-drivers,  each  of  whom 
seemed  to  take  a  fancy  to  me,  and  desired  to  take 
me  to  the  wharf.  Finally  got  to  the  wharf  with 
whole  bones,  and,  after  fighting  my  way  through 
another  army  of  beggars,  enjoying  a  bit  of  a  "  fist- 
icuff"  with  a  hack-driver,  quarrelling  with  a  police- 
man, and  bloodying  the  nose  of  a  gondolier,  got 
safe  upon  the  deck  of  a  miserable  little  steamer 
called  the  "Pompeii."  Got  aboard  just  in  time  to 
prevent  a  "fist  and  skull"  frolic  between  an  Amer- 
ican friend  of  mine  and  the  boatman  who  had  rowed 
him  from  the  wdiarf  to  the  steamer.  The  quarrel 
between  them  was  amusing.  The  American  was 
doing  his  level  best  to  curse  the  boatman  in  Italian, 
and  the  boatman  was  cursing  my  friend  in  most 
villainous  English.  These  rascally  hackmen,  boat- 
men, and  porters  almost  invariably  ask  double  j)rice 
for  what  they  do,  unless  you  make  a  distinct  bargain 
with  them  before  they  perform  the  service. 

The  little  steamer  was  packed  full  of  passengers, 
and,  strange  to  say,  there  were  more  Americans 
than  any  others.     A  strolling  band  of  female  musi- 


iial's  travels.  143 

clans  came  on  board  and  treated  ns  to  some  very 
g-ood  music,  before  we  set  sail ;  and  what  was  pecu- 
liarly cheering  to  me,  they  performed  "  Old  Folks 
at  Home,"  "Old  Kentucky  Home,"  and  "Yankee 
Doodle."  This  brought  forth  loud  applause  from 
the  American  passengers,  and  lightened  all  of  our 
pockets  to  the  amount  of  many  sous. 

At  four  o'clock  the  steaming  apparatus  was  put 
to  work,  and  with  its  coughing,  wheezing,  spitting, 
and  snorting,  we  glided  out  of  the  harbor  of  Leg- 
horn, and  took  our  course  towards  Civita  Vecchia, 
the  port  nearest  Eome.  The  'evening  was  delight- 
ful, the  sk}'  perfectly  clear,  and  scarce  a  breath  of 
wind.  The  deep  blue  Mediterranean  was  almost  as 
calm  and  quiet  as  the  limpid  waters  of  our  own 
beautiful  Tennessee.  The  sun  went  down  into  the 
bosom  of  the  sea,  leaving  the  sk}'  so  beautifully 
•  tinged  that  Claude  Lorraine  would  have  jumped  up 
and  cracked  his  heels  together  with  pure  delight, 
could  he  but  have  been  on  earth  to  witness  it. 

A  little  after  sundown  the  bell  sounded  for  dinner, 
when  a  terrific  rush  was  made  for  the  cabin,  in 
which  scuffle  the  lady  passengers  were  promiscuously 
squeezed,  and  much  crinoline  was  said  to  be  worsted. 
As  5'ou  may  be  somewhat  curious  to  know  what 
good  things  could  induce  such  a  rush,  I  will  append 
a  bill  of  faro.  First  course :  five  spoonsful  of  hot 
water,  with  thirteen  specks  of  grease  floating  on 
top,  and  twenty-three  grains  of  rice  at  the  bottom. 
This,  through  courtesy,  was  called  soup.  Second 
course :    a  boiled  L'ish  potato,  about  as  big  as  a 


144  hal's   travels. 

lump  of  chalk.  Third  course :  a  chicken,  cut  into 
forty-two  pieces,  and  some  salad,  which  I  thought 
had  a  very  fishy  smell.  My  right-hand  neighbor 
said  he  thought  it  was  seasoned  with  cod-liver  oil. 
Fourth  course :  a  very  small  dab  of  spinach. 
Dessert :  one  pear  and  two  almonds  apiece. 

After  dinner  went  out  to  gaze  at  the  moon.  It 
was  nearly  full,  (much  nearer  than  we  were,  although 
just  from  the  dinner-table;)  and  so  beautifully  did 
it  shine  upon  the  dancing  water,  that  the  scene  was 
enchanting.  Many  songs  were  sung ;  many  stories 
were  told ;  and  I  am' not  sure  but  a  little  courting 
was  done  that  night  on  the  deck  of  that  little 
steamer. 

At  the  proper  hour  I  went  down  into  the  cabin, 
to  go  to  bed,  but  found  all  the  berths  taken.  The 
captain  politely  informed  me  that  I  would  have  to 
lie  upon  the  table.  I  objected  to  that,  emphati- 
cally, not  wishing  to  be  disposed  of  in  such  a  sum- 
mary manner.  The  captain  assured  me  that  if  I 
would  sufi^er  myself  to  be  "laid  upon  the  table,"  it 
should  not  be  considered  a  final  disposition,  but 
that  I  should  be  "  called  up"  at  the  proper  time, 
lie  however  acknowledged  the  reasonableness  of 
my  objection,  and  kindly  gave  me  ni}^  choice,  to 
either  be  laid  upon  the  table  or  "  floored."  I  chose 
the  latter,  and  with  man}'-  others  spread  myself 
upon  the  floor,  and  enjoyed  a  comfortable  night's 
rest. 

I  arose  the  next  morning  with  the  sun,  went  on 
deck,  and  got.aviewof  that  delectable  town  known 


hal's  travels.  145 

as  Civita  Veccbia.  It  is  a  frightful  place ;  and  even 
now  the  thought  of  having  to  go  through  it  again, 
territies  me.  If  my  ink  were  black  enough,  I 
would  write  you  a  description  of  Civita  Veccbia 
and  its  people,  together  with  my  opinion  of  the 
Eoman  la\\'s  which  govern  it.  But  with  ordinary 
ink  I  could  not  do  it  justice,  and  will  therefore  let 
it  pass.  Our  boat  anchored  in  the  harbor  at  eight 
o'clock.  Our  passports  were  sent  on  shore,  and, 
after  waiting  two  hours,  permission  was  given  us 
by  the  police  to  land.  The  business  of  landing  was 
tedious,  as  only  two  small  boats  were  employed. 
Finally  we  all  got  ashore,  and,  as  usual,  were  set 
upon  by  the  beggars.  Our  baggage  was  thrown 
pell-mell  into  carts,  and  trotted  olf  to  the  custom- 
house, and  we  required  to  follow.  The  ceremony 
of  examining  baggage  occupied  just  five  hours ;  and 
everybody  who  touched  it  had  to  be  paid.  After 
hunting  another  hour,  and  walking  two  miles,  w^e 
at  length  found  the  head  of  the  police  department, 
and  got  our  passports,  paying,  of  course,  for  the 
vise  of  the  chief  After  this,  we  were  suffered  to 
go  to  a  hotel  and  get  our  breakfast,  now  late  in  the 
afternoon.  About  seventy-five  porters  demanded 
pay  for  taking  care  of  the  baggage  wiiile  we  ate. 

Yet  Civita  Veccbia,  with  all  its  faults,  is  not 
without  its  attractions.  After  breakfast,  leave  was 
kindly  given  all  of  us  who  had  any  curiosity,  to 
enter  the  Church  of  the  "  Immaculate  Conception," 
and  take  a  look  at  the  celebrated  vnnldvrj  picture,  of 
whicli  you  have  no  doubt  heard.     It  is  a  picture  of 


146  hal's    travels. 

the  Holy  Virgin  which  adorns  the  altar ;  and  a  very 
pretty  painting  it  is.  The  officiating  priest  informed 
us  with  prodigious  gravity,  that  in  1854  this  picture 
commenced  winking  its  eyes,  and  continued  to  do 
so  for  three  months  continuously;  that  it  had 
winked  four  times  within  the  last  month ;  that  it 
had  been  eighteen  days  since  it  winked  the  last 
time.  A  statement  of  this  miracle  is  inscribed  in 
the  stone  wall  of  the  church,  in  the  form  of  a  bull 
of  Pope  Pius  IX.,  ordering  the  name  of  the  church 
to  be  changed  on  account  of  it,  from  Santa  Maria 
to  that  of  the  Immaculate  Conception  —  signed, 
"Pius  IX.!"  Xow,  if  I  had  not  seen  the  picture 
and  the  inscription,  and  had  not  the  priest,  in  his 
holy  robes,  informed  me  of  the  fact,  I  doubt  much 
if  I  could  ever  have  believed  full}'  in  the  miracle. 

After  leaving  the  church  of  the  Immaculate  Con- 
ception, with  its  wonderful  picture,  we  started  for 
the  depot,  all  taking  carriages,  of  course,  as  the  dri- 
vers generously  offered  to  carry  us  for  the  small  sum 
of  half  a  paul  each.  This  was  cheap  enough,  but 
upon  reaching  the  depot  we  had  to  pay  not  only  the 
half  paul  for  our  own  ride,  but  a  paul  for  each  par- 
ticular article  of  baggage,  however  small,  besides 
paying  parties  for  carrying  the  trunks  from  the  car- 
riages into  the  depot.  Finally,  near  five  o'clock, 
the  whistle  sounded,  and  we  gladly  bade  farewell  to 
Civita  Vecchia,  and  bounded  off"  towards  Rome. 
My  opinion  is,  that  the  man  who  can  get  through 
that  seaport,  and  keep  his  temper  the  while,  is  a 
philosopher,  deserving  more  praise  than  was  ever 


iial's  travels.  147 

awarded  to  Socrates,  or  even  poor  old  Job.  Even 
your  pliilosopliic  correspondent  came  well-nigh 
falling  into  a  passion  on  divers  occasions  while 
there. 

\  Two  hours'  run  brought  me  to  the  cit}'  of  the 
Caesars — once  the  mistress  of  the  world,  and  the 
seat  of  art,  learning,  and  eloquence.  Yes,  by  seven 
o'clock  we  were  in  Rome,  gazing  with  awe  and 
wonder  at  the  scenes  before  us,  by  moonlight.  And 
here  we  have  been  many  days,  walking  amid  palaces, 
clambering  among  ruins,  groping  among  catacombs, 
and  seeing  manv  things  that  can  be  seen  nowhere 
but  in  Home.  I  have  viewed  the  city  and  its  classic 
environs  from  the  heights  of  Pincian  Hill ;  from  the 
Palatine  and  Capitoline  Hills ;  have  stood  upon  the 
Tarpeian  Rock,  and  upon  the  towering  dome  of  St. 
Peter's ;  have  walked  upon,  around,  and  beneath 
the  great  Coliseum,  and  have  stood  beneath  the 
oldest  and  grandest  dome  upon  earth,  the  Pantheon. 
All  these  things  and  many  more  have  I  seen,  and 
still,  for  the  life  of  me,  I  cannot  realize  that  I  am  in 
Rome. 

Here  Catholicism  reigns  triumphant ;  stalks 
abroad  at  noonday  and  in  the  night-time,  arrayed 
in  all  its  pomp  and  glory.  Here  ignorance  prevails, 
and  superstition  reigns  over  all.  The  Bible  is  pro- 
hibited, and  the  people  are  not  allowed  to  whisper, 
or  even  to  think  that  God  can  be  approached  in  any 
way  except  through  the  priesthood,  and  by  doing 
penance.  Intelligent  American  people  would 
scarcely  believe  me  were  I  to  tell  them  but  the  half 


148  hal's  travels. 

of  what  I  hear,  see,  and  learn  every  day  about  the 
humbuggery  of  the  Cathohc  rulers,  and  the  super- 
stitions of  the  Eoman  people.  ISTothing  seems  too 
ridiculous  for  them  to  believe.  In  St.  Peter's 
church  there  is  a  bronze  statue — a  hideous-looking 
thing — seated  upon  a  pedestal.  The  image  seems 
to  be  holding  out  its  right  foot,  the  toe  of  which  all 
the  faithful  kiss.  I  have  seen  hundreds  kiss  it,  and 
a  cardinal  among  the  number.  It  is  said  to  have 
been  originally  a  statue  of  Jupiter,  but  it  is  now 
called  St.  Peter.  I  went  to  the  church  of  St.  John 
Lateran  the  other  day,  and  in  an  adjoining  building 
I  saw  a  staircase  up  which  a  company  of  people 
were  ascending  on  their  knees,  kissing  devoutly 
each  step  as  they  ascended.  I  asked  the  meaning 
of  this,  and  was  told  by  the  priest  that  the  stairs 
were  brought  from  the  Palace  of  Pilate,  in  Jeru- 
salem, and  were  the  same  that  our  Saviour  passed 
over  when  carried  before  Pilate.  He  said  that  all 
believers  who  went  up  these  stairs  on  their  knees, 
were  granted  ten  years  indulgence  for  every  step. 
A  notice  upon  the  wall  signed  by  the  Pope  (Gregory, 
as  well  as  I  remember)  confirmed  what  the  priest 
said.  In  this  same  building  are  preserved  a  great 
many  valuable  relics :  the  curbing  which  sur- 
rounded the  well  where  Christ  talked  with  the  wo- 
man of  Samaria ;  a  stone  table  with  a  hole  through 
it,  which  we  are  seriously  told  was  made  by  a  wafer 
being  dropped  upon  it  by  a  doubting  priest,  who, 
while  administering  the  holy  sacrament,  doubted  for 
a  moment  that  the  wafer  was  really  the  flesh  of  tlie 


\  II  AL'S    TRAVELS.  149 

Saviour !  But  as  I  was  only  in  this  room  for  a  mo- 
ment, (it  being  closing  time,)  I  will  wait  until  I  visit 
it  again  before  I  tell  yon  of  the  hundreds  of  relics 
there  to  be  seen.  The  staircase  mentioned  above 
is  the  same  that  Martin  Luther,  the  great  reformer, 
was  going  up  when  he  was  converted  from  the  error 
of  his  way,  and  renounced  Catholicism  for  ever. 

In  the  church  of  Ara  Coeli  is  another  wonderful 
thing.  It  is  a  wooden  figure  of  a  baby,  called  the 
infant  Saviour,  said  to  have  been  carved  by  a  Fran- 
ciscan pilgrim,  out  of  a  tree  from  the  Mount  of 
Olives,  and  painted  by  St.  Luke.  To  touch  this 
image  is  said  to  be  wonderfully  efficacious  in  the 
curing  of  diseases,  and  is  a  sure  preventive  of  ac- 
cident, both  by  sea  and  land.  If  it  does  possess  this 
virtue,  I  am  safe,  for  I  have  touched  it.  It  is  rigged 
out  in  the  most  gorgeous  style,  wonderfully  rich  in 
jewels,  which  bespangle  it  from  head  to  foot — pre- 
sents from  the  wealthy  whom  it  has  relieved  in  sick- 
ness. No  Roman  lady  of  quality  ever  goes  to  the 
"straw"  without  having  this  image  present,  which 
is  said  to  insure  a  safe  delivery.  The  priest  whose 
duty  it  is  to  take  care  of  this  miraculous  baby,  told 
us  that  there  was  never  a  day  tiiat  it  was  not  carried 
out  to  attend  the  sick.  It  has  a  coach  of  its  own  to 
ride  in.  In  the  church  are  a  great  many  paintings, 
representing  the  accidents  which  the  touching  of 
this  figure  will  prevent,  such  as  horses  running  away, 
coaches  overturned,  shipwrecks,  persons  fulling 
down    stairs,   fulling   scafiblds,   assassinations,    and 


150  HAL'S    TRAVELS. 

hundreds  of  other  accidents  to  which  man  is  liahle. 
This  baby  is  a  great  source  of  revenue  to  the  church, 
for  besides  the  fees  paid  for  its  going  out  to  the  sick, 
all  to  whom  it  is  exhibited  are  expected  to  pay  the 
priest  something.  All  the  peasant  women  in  the 
country  have  the  privilege  of  bringing  their  children 
to  touch  it  once  a  year  gratis,  at  its  festival,  the 
Epiphany.  There  is  a  cross  in  the  church,  that  by 
kissing,  one  is  allowed  seven  years'  indulgence. 
Some  of  the  other  churches  offer  still  greater  induce- 
ments to  worshippers.  These  are  but  a  thousandth 
part  of  the  absurdities  here  practiced  and  sanctioned 
by  the  Pope. 

There  is  one  place  here,  however,  that  I  visited 
with  feelings  of  reverence — the  house  in  which  St. 
Paul  lived  when  here.  You  will  remember  that  he 
rented  a  house  and  lived  here  two  years,  and 
preached  the  gospel  to  all  who  came  to  him.  The 
floor  of  the  house  is  now  several  feet  below  the  sur- 
face of  the  ground,  but  the  old  walls  remain  perfect. 
The  door  has  been  walled  up  for  many  centuries, 
and  we  now  reach  it  by  descending  a  flight  of  steps 
leading  from  the  vestibule  of  the  church  of  Santa 
Maria  in  Via  Lata.  The  identity  of  this  house  is 
one  of  the  Roman  traditions  that  I  can  believe,  be- 
cause it  is  reasonable  to  suppose  that  the  Christians 
who  have  lived  here  ever  since  the  days  of  St.  Paul 
would  never  have  lost  sight  of  the  house  in  which 
he  lived  and  preached  to  them.  Besides,  there  are 
other  houses  standing  here  that  were  built,  perhaps, 


iial's  travels.  151 

long  before  it  was.  The  Panthcou,  for  instance, 
almost  perfect,  was  built  many  years  before  Christ 
was  npon  earth. 

While  standing  in  that  little  room,  and  thinking 
of  the  thrilling  eloquence  of  the  apostle  which  its 
walls  had  echoed  a  thousand  times — of  the  humble 
simplicity  of  his  teachings  and  manner  of  his  life — 
and  contrasting  them  with  the  present  pomp  of  those 
who  here  profess  to  be  his  followers,  I  could  not 
but  think  what  wonderful  strides  the  Christian  re- 
ligion had  made  since  his  day  !  If  Popery  and  the 
manner  of  Catholic  worship  be  right,  the  Apostle 
Paul  must  have  been  a  stupid  old  fogy.  I  take  it 
that  he  was  a  sort  of  Methodist  preacher,  and  in- 
structed all  who  came  to  him  in  a  plain  simple  way, 
ex^Vounding  the  Scriptures  in  such  a  manner  that 
all  who  desired  to  do  so  could  understand  and  be- 
lieve. Don't  think  he  ever  rode  in  a  gilded  carriage, 
or  wore  a  crown  with  diamonds  in  it.  Nor  do  I 
believe  that  he  would  have  suffered  men  to  kneel  to 
liim  and  to  worship  him  in  the  street — he  or  the 
Apostle  Peter  either — without  rebuking  them.  But 
this  onl)'-  shows  that  they  Avere  behind  the  times. 
Their  successor,  the  Pope,  dresses  in  purple  and  fine 
linen,  wears  a  golden  crown,  rides  in  a  gilded  car- 
riage with  a  numerous  body-guard,  and  expects  the 
people  to  kneel  to  him  when  he  passes  along  the  street 
— and  thousands  do  it.  This  is  the  difference  be- 
tween the  Pope  and  his  predecessors.  His  Holiness 
is  evidently  aware  of  the  old-fogyism  of  the  Apostle 
Paul,  and  hence  denies  his  people  the  privilege  of 


152  hal's   travels. 

learning  any  tiling  about  his  precepts.  When  the 
apostle  left  Rome  and  went  over  to  Ephesus,  after 
having  established  a  good  large  congregation  here, 
he  wrote  them  a  long  pastoral  letter,  full  of  instruc- 
tion, and  which  he  no  doubt  thought  would  be  edi- 
fying to  them.  He  wrote  it  in  simple  language, 
that  they  might  the  more  readily  understand  it. 
Now  this  letter  the  Pope  utterly  forbids  his  people 
to  read,  although  written  *  directly  to  them.  The 
book  containing  this  letter  is  not  allowed  to  remain 
in  the  hands  of  any  of  them.  It  is  banished  from 
the  empire,  and  no  man  is  allowed  to  bring  it  here. 
(See  Paul's  Epistle  to  the  Romans.) 

A  few  days  ago  I  visited  the  Mamertine  Prison, 
where  the  Apostles  Paul  and  Peter  were  confined  as 
prisoners  before  their  execution.  It  is  a  dismal  dun- 
geon at  the  foot  of  the  Capitoline  Hill.  It  is  the 
same  in  which  Jugurtha  was  starved  to  death,  and 
where  many  of  the  Catiline  conspirators  were  con- 
fined. In  the  floor  of  this  prison  is  a  well  of  clear 
pure  water,  w^hich  is  said  to  have  miraculously  sprung 
up  to  afford  water  for  Paul  to  baptize  the  keepers 
of  the  prison  who  were  converted  under  his  influ- 
ence. I  drank  water  from  this  well.  On  the  side 
of  the  wall  by  the  steps  of  this  dungeon  is  a  print 
of  a  man's  face  in  the  stone.  The  keeper  informed 
us  that  it  was  made  by  St.  Peter's  face  being  knocked 
against  the  wall  by  one  of  the  jailers.  The  impres- 
sion is  as  distinct  as  if  it  had  been  done  with  a  ham- 
mer and  chisel.    It  is  protected  by  an  iron  grating. 

In  the  church  of  St.  John  Lateran  we  were  shown 


HAL'S    TRAVELS.  153 

tlie  identical  tabic  on  which  Christ  and  his  disciples 
ate  the  Last  Supper.    It  is  preserved  in  a  glass  case. 

There  are  three  hundred  churches  in  Rome,  and 
I  believe  all  of  them  possess  a  piece  of  the  true 
cross,  and  most  of  them  a  thorn  from  the  crown  of 
thorns.  I  am  told,  but  have  not  seen  it,  that  one  of 
them  possesses  a  bottle  of  milk  from  the  breast  of 
the  Virgin  Mary  !  This  is  no  joke.  I  have  it  from 
the  very  best  authority. 

Perhaps  you  Avould  like  me  to  tell  something 
about  the  great  St.  Peter's  church.  All  that  I  can 
say  is  that  it  is  indescribable.  Its  interior  exceeds 
any  thing  I  had  ever  dreamed  of  Its  size  does  not 
exceed  its  beauty.  It  would  take  a  much  greater 
mind  than  I  possess  even  to  conceive  any  thing  half 
so  magnificent.  It  is  truly  the  world's  wonder.  I 
have  heard  it  said  that  it  cost  one  hundred  and  (huii/- 
scven  millions  of  dollars!  And,  think  of  it!  all  this 
money  raised  by  the  sale  of  indulgences  !  What  a 
stupendous  swindle ! 

I  have  visited  the  galleries  of  the  Vatican,  said  to 
be  among  the  richest  in  the  world ;  and  while  there 
saw  the  modus  operandi  of  manufacturing  mosaics, 
but  did  not  hear  the  Vatican  thunder  "nary"  time. 
From  the  best  information  I  can  get,  the  Vatican 
contains  over  six  thousand  rooms !  It  is  said  to 
cover  forty  acres ! 

I  shall  not  attempt  to  tell  you  in  this  letter  any 
thing  about  the  ruins  or  environs  of  Rome.  I  have 
much  to  see  yet,  and  may  write  you  again  before 
leaving  here.     Shall  remain  here  until  after  Christ- 


154  hal's  travels. 

mas,  and  then  go  to  E'aples.  There  are  many  Amer- 
icans in  Rome,  several  of  whom  are  going  to  Egypt 
and  Jerusalem. 

I  am  glad  to  inform  you  that  the  bells  are  not 
rung  here  half  as  much  as  in  Florence. 

If  this  letter  is  too  long,  you  must  blame  the  ele- 
ments, not  me,  for  if  the  rain  had  not  kept  me  in 
the  house  to-day,  I  should  not  have  written. 

When  the  weather  gets  better  I  am  going  out  to 
Appii  Forum,  and  the  Three  Taverns,  where  the 
brethren  went  out  to  meet  the  Apostle  Paul  when 
he  was  coming  to  E-ome.  The  meeting  was  very 
gratifjdng  to  the  apostle,  and  he  "  thanked  God  and 
took  courage."  It  is  about  three  hours  travel  from 
here  to  the  Three  Taverns. 

Peace  be  with  you  and  all  my  friends. 

Farewell.  Hal. 


HAL'S    TRAVELS.  15^ 


LETTER   XVII. 


ROME. 


I  HAVE  now  been  in  Eorac  bard  upon  tbree  weeks, 
nnd  tbe  time  of  my  departure  draws  near.  My  duds 
arc  packed,  and  my  passport  vised  for  Naples,  and 
to-morrow  morning  I  sball  take  my  course  along 
tbe  Appian  "Way  for  that  fair  city.  I  sball  remain 
tbere  long  enougb  to  see  Naples  and  its  neigbbor- 
ing  lions,  and  tbcn,  Ho  for  tbe  Scripture  lands  of 
Egypt  and  Palestine  !  I  bave  a  longing  desire  to 
look  upon  tbose  bolj^  scenes  of  wbicb  we  read  in 
Scripture,  before  my  final  departure  from  tbis  "  low 
ground  of  sorrow." 

My  sojourn  in  Eome  bas  been  exceedingly  plea- 
sant, and  I  leave  it  witb  regret,  for  I  bave  not  seen 
one  balf  of  tbe  places  and  tbiugs  of  interest  bere 
and  bereabouts.  To  see  Rome  as  it  ougbt  to  bo 
seen  and  studied  would  require  montbs.  Sigbt- 
seeing  is  very  mucb  like  work,  and  he  who  follows 
it  well  is  apt  to  sleep  well  of  nights.  I  do.  Tbe 
enjoyment  I  bave  bad  bere  bas  been  greatly  height- 
ened by  an  elderly  gentleman  who  almost  invari- 
ably accompanies  me  in  my  excursions.  He  is  au 
original,  and  I  cultivate  him  to  the  best  of  my 
ability.     Will  give  yoU'  a  little  sketch  of  him :  He  is 


156  hal's  travels. 

perhaps  fifty-five  or  sixty  years  of  age,  but  hale  and 
active  as  a  boy ;  has  a  great  deal  more  money  than 
classical  information,  and  knows  more  about  "  per 
cent."  than  the  fine  arts  ;  has  recently  married  him 
a  young  wife,  and  is  in  Europe  on  a  bridal  tour.  His 
wife  being  young,  and  very  gay,  prefers  company  of 
her  own  age  and  temper  to  that  of  her  gray-headed 
lord.  She  will  drive  round  the  city  with  the  dash- 
ing Captain  Sucker,  or  the  witty  Major  Squirt,  while 
her  antiquated  worser-half  contents  himself  to  foot 
it  with  me.  He  good-naturedly  lets  her  have  her 
own  way,  and  lets  her  have  as  much  pin-money  as 
she  wants,  which  is  no  trifle,  I  assure  you.  She  is 
having  two  portraits  of  herself  painted  by  the  best 
masters  of  Rome,  and  her  bust  in  marble,  made  by 
the  greatest  sculptor,  besides  a  great  number  of  ca- 
meo profiles.  She  objects  to  the  old  gentleman 
having  his  portrait  painted,  saying  that  none  but 
classical  faces  should  be  put  upon  canvas.  He 
meekly  obeys  her  wishes.  Dealers  in  pearls,  dia- 
monds, and  other  fancy  articles,  will  be  sorry  when 
she  leaves  Rome. 

Sometimes  Mr.  Smith  (that  is  my  old  friend's 
name)  and  m}.  self  wander  through  long  galleries  of 
paintings  and  statuary,  and  it  is  not  a  little  refresh- 
ing to  hear  the  comments  of  the  old  gentleman  upon 
celebrated  works  of  art.  The  nude  appearance  of 
the  figures  shocks  him  greatly,  and  he  is  not  back- 
ward in  expressing  his  contempt  for  the  vulgar  taste 
of  the  Romans.  Upon  viewing  a  statue  of  Venus, 
a  work  of  great  celebrity,  he-  thought  the  man  who 


HAL'S    TRAVELS.  157 

made  it  might  bave  been  much  better  employed. 
He  was  much  surprised  to  see  what  he  termed  "  de- 
cent-looking men  and  women"  walking  about 
through  the  gallery  looking  at  the  naked  figures 
together.  Said  such  things  would  not  be  allowed 
where  he  came  from.  Upon  seeing  a  bronze  figure 
of  Pan,  he  was  indignant.  Said  that  was  "run- 
ning the  thing  into  the  ground,"  to  make  a  statue 
half  man  and  half  beast.  We  went  one  day  to  see 
the  Dying  Gladiator,  a  Grecian  work  of  art  "much 
prized  by  the  Romans.  Said  he  thought  most  any 
stone-cutter  might  hew  out  as  good  a  thing  as  that. 
Upon  looking  at  the  celebrated  painting  of  the 
Transfiguration,  by  Raphael,  said  he  thought  it  a 
"  tolerable  good  photograph,  but  not  better  than  Zeph 
Jones  could  draw."  Told  me  that  Zeph  Jones  had 
painted  the  pictures  of  his  two  daughters  at  home, 
which  were  "  as  like  as  could  be."  "We  went  one 
day  to  see  the  ruins  of  Nero's  Palace.  He  seemed 
much  interested  in  the  exploration,  and  asked  me 
who  Nero  was.  Told  him  that  Nero,  according  to 
tlie  best  information  I  could  get,  was  &  fiddler  who 
used  to  play  for  the  Roman  Senators  to  dance.  He 
said  Nero  must  have  been  a  very  rich  man  for  a 
fiddler !  Wlien  walking  through  St.  Peter's  upon 
one  occasion,  the  old  gentleman  seemed  to  be  deeply 
absorbed — dumfouuded,  in  fact — and  stood  gazing 
up  with  his  mouth  and  eyes  wide  open.  I  asked, 
"What  do  you  think  of  this  establishment,  Mr. 
Smith  ?"  After  shaking  his  head,  looking  wise, 
and  pausing  for  about  two  minutes,  he  replied,  "  I 


158  hal's  travels. 

think  tlie  man  wlio  got  this  np  must  have  had  con- 
siderable gumption  !"  I  thought  so  too.  He  don't 
see  what  "  earthly  use"  the  numerous  pillars  and 
columns  are  that  stand  in  various  parts  of  the  city, 
"  with  outlandish  names  on  them."  In  answer  to 
my  question  as  to  his  opinion  of  the  Coliseum,  said 
he  thought  it  a  great  waste  of  money  to  build  such 
a  thing.  Two  or  three  daj's  ago  the  old  gentleman 
expressed  a  desire  to  see  the  holy  staircase  up 
which  the  faithful  Catholics  crawl  upon  their  knees. 
We  went  to  it,  and,  as  usual,  found  many  going  up — 
ragged  peasants,  and  ladies  in  silks  and  huge  crino- 
lines, going  up  side  by  side,  all  alike  devoutly  kiss- 
ing the  steps  as  they  ascended.  A  mischievous  lady 
of  our  party  bantered  my  old  friend,  saying  she 
would  go  up  if  he  would,  whereupon,  to  my  utter 
astonishment,  both  started.  But,  unlike  the  devout 
worshippers,  they  did  not  pause  upon  each  step  to 
repeat  a  prayer,  but  rushed  on  as  rapidly  as  they 
could  go.  In  his  anxiety  to  pass  some  that  were 
ahead  of  him,  the  old  man  unwittingly  placed  his 
knee  upon  the  crinoline  of  a  devout  Catholic  lady 
just  as  she  was  raising  her  knee  to  make  another 
step,  which  caused  a  tearing  or  breaking  loose  some- 
where about  her  skirts.  She  looked  daggers  at  him, 
whereupon  he  quailed,  and  turned  to  descend  on  his 
feet.  This  the  attendant  priest  forbade,  (the  stairs 
are  considered  too  holy  to  be  profaned  with  the  feet,) 
when  he  turned  again  and  finished  the  ascent  slowly 
on  his  knees.  He  says  it  was  very  hard  work. 
So  you  see  upon  the  whole  I  have  had  a  good 


hal's  travels.  159 

time  with  Mr.  Smith,  and  I  hate  to  leave  Rome,  on 
his  account,  as  much  as  any  thing  else. 
.  Among  the  other  lions  of  Rome,  I  have  seen  his 
Holiness  the  Pope,  on  various  occasions.  The  first 
time  I  saw  him  was  last  Sunday  week.  I  '11  tell 
you  how  it  came  ahout.  I  had  understood  the  old 
gentleman  was  to  officiate  at  High  Mass,  in  the  Six- 
tine  Chapel,  connected  with  the  Vatican  Palace. 
At  the  proper  hour  I  went  over  and  stood  in  the 
long  gallery,  to  watch  the  assembling  of  the  cardi- 
nals, all  of  whom  came  in  splendid  gilded  carriages, 
each  with  three  footmen  and  a  driver.  When  they 
had  entered,  I  followed  them  up  the  long  stairway  that 
leads  to  the  chapel,  between  files  of  soldiers,  having 
been  first  divested  of  my  shawl,  by  a  guard,  at  the 
foot  of  the  stairs.  On  reaching  the  door  at  the  chapel, 
I  was  stopped  by  two  soldiers,  and  informed  that  I 
could  not  enter  without  a  dress-coat.  I  thought  it 
hard,  but  of  course  had  to  submit.  Going  down 
not  in  the  best  humor,  I  gathered  up  my  shawl  to 
start  back  to  my  hotel.  The  guard,  seeing  the  cause 
of  my  discomfiture,  proposed  to  remedy  it,  and  fix 
me  for  my  appearance  before  his  Holiness,  if  I 
would  give  him  a  paul,  (a  dime.)  I  gave  him  the 
paul ;  whereupon  he  proceeded  to  pin  up  my  skirts 
so  as  to  give  me  the  appearance  of  having  on  a 
dress-coat.  Thus  fixed,  I  again  ascended  the  stairs, 
and  marched  boldly  in,  just  in  time  to  hear  the 
opening  chant,  which  was  as  fine,  if  not  the  finest 
music  I  ever  heard.  Just  after  my  entrance,  his 
High-mightiness  came  in  by  a  side  door,  accompa- 


160  hal's  .teavels. 

niecl  by  officials,  four  of  whom  were  required  to 
carry  his  trail.  1  was  much  pleased  with  the  bland 
smile  that  rested  upon  his  face.  There  seemed  to 
be  no  lurking  devil  there.  He  took  his  seat,  and 
his  attendants  busied  themselves  Avonderfully  in 
arranging  his  robes.  Two  cardinals  then  lifted  the 
hat  from  the  Pope's  head ;  two  others  got  upon 
their  knees  before  him,  and  held  up  a  large  book, 
while  another  held  a  lighted  candle  before  the 
pages  for  him  to  read.  He  read  in  a  clear,  loud 
voice.  Then  rose  to  his  feet,  when  all  the  rest 
knelt  down.  He  waved  his  hand,  like  sowing  oats,  to 
indicate  that  he  was  scattering  blessings  upon  the 
kneeling  multitude.  After  that,  a  velvet  cushion,  with 
gold  fringe,  was  brought  in  by  two  cardinals,  upon 
which  the  Pope  knelt,  being  assisted  both  to  get 
down  and  to  rise,  by  his  attendants.  During  the 
service,  a  file  of  soldiers  stood  upon  each  side  of 
the  aisle,  from  the  door  nearly  back  to  the  high 
altar,  armed  with  spears  and  battle-axes. 

The  exhibition  at  St.  Peter's,  on  Sunday,  (Christ- 
mas day,)  was  splendid.  I  never  before  saw  any 
display  half  so  gorgeous.  My  friend  Smith  and 
myself  concluded  to  take  a  carriage  and  ride  over, 
(the  Madam  having  engaged  to  go  with  Major 
Squirt.)  After  starting,  we  were  informed  that  the 
hour  for  the  cardinals  to  proceed  to  the  church  had 
arrived,  and  that  we  could  not  cross  the  bridge  over 
the  Tiber  until  their  carriages  had  passed.  We 
therefore  had  to  make  a  circuit  of  a  mile  to  cross 
at  another  bridge.     My  old  friend  was  wrathy,  and 


iial's    travels.  IGl 

boldly  insinuated  that  if  lie  ever  caught  one  of  the 
d — d  stuck-up  cardinals  in  Boston,  he'd  make  him 
shake  for  his  presumption. 

We  arrived  at  St.  Peter's  in  time  to  see  most  of 
the  cardinals  arrive  into  the  square  before  the 
church.  It  was  a  brilliant  display.  They  came  iu 
their  holida}^  coaches,  which  were  gilded  all  over, 
and  looked  almost  like  they  were  made  up  of  solid 
gold.  A  carriage  a  little  less  brilliant  followed  each 
of  the  cardinals,  with  his  chaplain.  The  three 
servants  that  stood  behind  each  of  these  carriages 
were  rigged  out  in  a  style  that  would  have  made 
the  most  gaudily-dressed  monkey  envious.  Regi- 
ments of  French  soldiers  were  on  duty  in  front  of 
the  church,  and  scores  of  mounted  police  were  gal- 
loping about  in  various  directions.  Upon  entering 
the  church,  we  walked  between  lines  of  soldiers 
extending  a  hundred  yards  from  the  door  towards  the 
interior.  There  were,  perhaps,  a  thousand  of  them, 
equipped  in  a  far  finer  style  than  I  ever  saw  soldiers 
before.  People  poured  into  the  building  almost  in 
one  solid  mass  for  nearly  an  hour,  and  yet  it  was 
not  filled !  And  with  all  that  great  crowd  there 
was  nothing  like  confusion.  I  was  fortunate  enough 
to  get  a  good  position  near  the  altar,  which  I  kept 
throughout  the  proceedings.  At  half-past  ten 
o'clock  cannons  were  fired  from  Castle  Angclo, 
and  then  the  Pope  made  his  entree,  seated  in  a 
chair,  upon  a  platform  borne  upon  the  shoulders  of 
twelve  cardinals,  Avhile  eight  others  supported  a 
golden-fringed  canopy  over  his  head.  They  marched 
6 


162  HAL'S     TRAVELS. 

slowly  from  the  door  to  the  high  altar,  the  holy  father 
smiling  and  scattering  blessings  upon  the  people  as 
he  went.  I  was  within  a  few  feet  of  him  when  he 
passed,  and  was  leaning  against  the  railing  of  the 
altar  while  he  performed  the  ceremonies  of  consecrat- 
ing the  bread  and  wine,  etc.,  etc.  So  you  see  I  had 
ample  opportunity  to  scan  his  countenance.  I  really 
fell  in  love  with  him.  To  my  liking,  Pope  Pius  has  the 
best  face  I  ever  saw.  He  looks  really  motherly.  But  he 
is  clay  in  the  hands  of  the  potter :  a  good  man,  per- 
haps ;  but  in  the  hands  of  villains,  of  whom  Cardinal 
Antonelli  is  chief.  The  performance  was  similar  to 
the  one  I  had  seen  the  Sunday  before,  except  there 
was  more  display.  The  robes  of  the  Pope  and  the 
cardinals  were  as  rich  as  it  is  possible  to  make  such 
things.  The  entire  furniture  of  the  altar  was  gold, 
studded  with  jewels. 

There  is  certainly  no  estimating  the  wealth  of 
the  Catholic  Church.  The  man  who  has  rolled  in 
wealth  and  played  with  jewels  all  his  life,  in  our 
republican  country,  will  be  overwhelmed  with 
astonishment  upon  coming  to  Eome.  At  the  con- 
clusion of  the  Christmas  service  in  St.  Peter's,  the 
Pope  was  carried  out  as  he  was  brought  in,  and  the 
multitude  dispersed  to  other  churches ;  for  scenes 
of  interest  were  kept  up  throughout  the  day  at 
different  places  of  worship. 

Ko  good  Catholic  is  supposed  to  have  slept  any 
in  Rome  on  Christmas  eve  night.  The  bells  were 
ringing  throughout  the  night,  and  exhibitions  of 
some  sort  kept  up  at  the  principal  churches.    There 


iial's    travels.  163 

seems  to  be  a  sort  of  puppet-show  rivalry  between 
the  churches  here,  to  see  which  can  drriw  the  great- 
est congregations.  The}"  pubHsh  programmes,  and 
invite  the  public  to  come  and  see  their  relics,  etc., 
etc.  For  instance,  the  Church  of  St.  Marcellus 
advertised,  on  Saturday,  that  they  would  get  up  a 
grand  illumination  that  night,  and  regale  the  public 
Avitli  splendid  music.  Santa  Maria  Maggiore  gave 
notice  that  at  three  o'clock  in  the  morning  they 
would  have  an  illumination,  and  would  exhibit  to 
the  public  the  identical  manger  in  which  the  infant 
Saviour  was  laid  in  Bethlehem;  also  a  portrait  of 
the  Hoh'  Virgin,  painted  by  St.  Luke.  San  Carlo 
announced  a  splendid  wax-work  representation  of 
the  Holy  Virgin  and  infant  Saviour  in  the  stable 
with  the  cattle  at  Bethlehem.  Ara  Coela  gave 
notice  that  the  Bambino,  the  miraculous  wooden 
baby  which  heals  diseases  and  prevents  accidents, 
would  be  on  exhibition  throughout  the  night.  One 
of  the  churches — I  do  not  remember  which — was 
to  exhibit  the  identical  swaddling-clothes  in  which 
the  Saviour  was  wrapped  at  his  birth.  At  St.  John 
Latcran  the  heads  of  the  Apostles  Paul  and  Peter 
were  on  exhibition.  They  are  still  exposed  to  the 
public  view.  jSIany  other  things  were  to  be  done 
at  other  churches. 

The  San  Marcellus  being  convenient,  I  concluded 
to  patronize  it.  Went  and  stayed  till  one  o'clock, 
and  was  horribl}'^  bored.  Came  home,  and  went  to 
bed.  The  Santa  Maria  Maggiore  failing  to  draw  a 
crowd  to  witness  their  exhibition  at  three  o'clock 


164  HAL'S     TRAVELS. 

in  the  morning,  consented,  "by  earnest  request," 
to  repeat  their  performance  at  three  o'clock  Sunday 
evening.  I  went.  The  building  is  only  second  to 
St.  Peter's  in  gorgeousness,  and  perhaps  third  in 
size.  It  is  very  large.  I  presume  there  were  from  one 
thousand  to  fifteen  hundred  tallow  candles  burning; 
but  the  illumination  was  dim.  They  had  darkened 
the  windows  hardly  enough  to  make  the  illumina- 
tion visible.  I  got  a  look  at  the  manger,  which  is 
preserved  in  a  glass  case.  The  portrait  of  the  Holy 
Virgin,  painted  by  St.  Luke,  is  so  dim  that  I  could 
make  nothing  of  it.  This  church  is  highly  esti- 
mated in  Rome,  on  account  of  the  miraculous  cir- 
cumstance that  caused  it  to  be  erected.  It  is  said 
that  a  snow-storm  once  fell  on  the  spot  where  it 
stands,  and  nowhere  else  in  the  city.  The  patch 
of  snow  that  fell  was  just  in  the  shape  of  a  church ; 
whereupon  its  erection  was  commenced  imme- 
diately. There  is  a  painting  in  the  church  repre- 
senting the  workmen  raking  away  the  snow,  to  lay 
the  foundation. 

The  Bambino  at  the  Ara  Ccela  Church  is  on  ex- 
hibition again  to-day,  and  people  are  allowed  to 
touch  it  gratis.  ^ 

I  went  to  the  church  and  catacombs  of  the  Ca- 
puchins, the  other  day,  and  there  saw  the  bones  of 
perhaps  a  hundred  thousand  men — thirty  or  forty 
wagon-loads  of  them.  They  are  stacked  in  arches, 
and  displayed  in  a  thousand  fantastic  forms.  Some 
skeletons  are  dressed  in  the  monkish  clothes  they 
wore  while  living,  and  look  hideous.     Others  are 


ual's  travels.  165 

dressed  and  laid  in  state,  seeming  to  have  been  pre- 
served, by  some  means,  from  decay.  They  have 
dried,  like  a  piece  of  beef.  The  walls  are  covered 
with  festoons  and  rosettes,  and  other  figures,  made 
with  bones ;  and  the  dismal  abode  is  lighted  by 
lanterns,  curiously  made  by  stringing  bones  toge- 
ther. "Within  this  charnel-house  there  is  an  altar, 
at  which  ever}-  one  who  kneels  is  granted  nine 
years'  indulgence ;  that  is,  the}'  will  be  released 
from  purgatory  nine  years  sooner  than  they  would 
otherwise  be.  None  of  our  party -availed  themselves 
of  the  liberal  ofler. 

"We  made  an  excursion  out  on  the  Appian  Way, 
the  other  day,  and,  among  other  things  of  interest, 
saw  the  catacombs  of  St.  Sebastian,  an  extensive 
subterranean  passage  where  the  Christians  formerly 
worshipped,  and  where  their  bodies  were  deposited 
during  the  time  of  their  persecution  by  the  Romans. 
In  the  church  built  over  the  entrance  to  these  cata- 
combs, we  saw,  among  other  relics,  one  of  the 
arrows  with  which  the  martyr  St.  Sebastian  was 
shot,'  and  the  post  to  which  he  was  tied.  Their 
most  highly-prized  relic,  however,  is  a  stone  in 
which  are  imprinted  the  tracks  of  our  Saviour, 
made  when  he  met  St.  Peter  running  aAvay  from 
Rome.  The  story  is,  that  when  the  apostle  was  im- 
prisoned in  Rome,  he  broke  his  prison,  and  escaped, 
one  night.  He  by  some  means  got  out  of  the  city 
gate,  and  started  to  make  his  escape  along  the 
Appian  Way.  At  the  spot  where  now  stands  this 
church,  he  was  met  by  the  Saviour,  and  told  that 


166  HAL'S    TRAVELS. 

he  must  return  to  Rome,  and  be  crucified.  He  did 
so  ;  and  when  the  Lord  departed,  he  left  his  tracks 
deeply  imprinted  in  the  stone  on  which  he  stood. 
They  are  about  one  inch  deep.  The  priest  showed 
us  the  stone  and  told  us  the  story  with  the  candor 
and  simplicity  of  a  child. 

If  I  were  to  tell  you  of  all  the  relics  I  have  seen, 
you  would  grow  tired  of  reading.  It  is  as  strange  as 
it  is  true,  that  men  who  have  ideas  above  the  brute, 
can  believe  in  such  absurd  things.  If  I  had  come 
to  Rome  a  Catholic,  I  should  leave  it  something 
else.  The  ignorance  of  the  people  is  certainly  the 
secret  of  the  success  of  Catholicism,  There  is  a 
church  near  my  hotel,  at  the  door  of  which  the  wind 
is  said  to  be  always  blowing.  A  story  is  told,  that 
the  devil  and  the  wind  were  once  promenading  the 
streets  together,  when,  coming  to  that  church,  the 
devil  requested  the  wind  to  stop  at  the  door,  while 
he  went  in  to  worship.  He  has  never  come  out, 
and  the  wind  still  waits  at  the  door  for  him.  The 
ignorant  people  of  the  neighborhood  cannot  be  in- 
duced to  go  into  the  church,  except  when  a  priest 
is  present.  They  firmly  believe  that  the  devil  is  in 
it.  Another  superstition  is,  that  the  ghost  of  Nero 
still  walks  on  Pincian  Hill  at  night,  and  no  one 
will  go  up  there  after  nightfall. 

A  large  party  of  our  American  friends  were  pre- 
sented to  the  Pope,  a  few  days  ago,  by  Mr.  Stock- 
ton, United  States  Minister.  Friend  Smith  and 
myself,  with  several  others,  were  on  a  country  ex- 
cursion at  the   time,  and  failed  to  be  presented. 


iial's  tkavels.  167 

Don't  know,  however,  that  we  lost  a  great  deal  by 
it.  Mr.  S.  thinks  we  were  fortunate.  Those  who 
were  presented  seemed  to  be  much  pleased  with  the 
manner  in  which  they  were  received.  Some  kissed 
the  hand  of  his  Holiness,  and  some  didn't.  Ho 
made  a  pretty  little  talk  to  them.  Expressed  a 
great  admiration  for  Americans.  Said  it  was  a 
great  country,  in  one  sense  of  the  word,  but  could 
never  become  truly  great  until  the  true  faith  was 
adopted  tlierc.  He  hoped  the  day  would  soon  come 
when  such  should  be  the  case. 

Now,  if  Ital}- — especially  the  Roman  States — is  a 
fair  specimen  of  the  "true  greatness"  that  follows 
the  adoption  of  the  "true  faith,"  I  trust  it  will  for 
ever  be  excluded  from  our  beloved  country.  It  is  a 
most  horrid  thing.  You  have  but  little  idea  of  the 
poverty,  misery,  and  wretchedness  of  this  country. 
All  the  wealth  is  in  the  hands  of  the  Church,  and, 
while  the  thousands  of  priests  and  other  officials  live 
in  luxury,  the  common  people  are  poor  and  miserable 
beyond  conception.  Were  it  not  for  the  strangers 
who  visit  here,  from  whom  tlicy  beg  a  pittance, 
many  would  starve.  There  is  nothing  here  to  give 
the  people  employment.  I  am  told  that  throughout 
the  entire  Roman  dominions  there  is  not  a  solitary 
cotton  or  woollen  manufactory,  nor  any  other  kind 
of  manufactory  worthy  of  the  name.  The  streets 
are  full  of  poor  ragged  wretches,  who  would  work 
no  doubt  if  they  had  any  thing  to  do.  They  are 
compelled  to  beg,  to  keep  soul  and  bod}-  together. 


168  HAL'S    TRAVELS. 

The  French  soldiers  who  are  stationed  here,  divide 
their  rations  with  the  miserable  creatures. 

And  this  is  the  "true  greatness"  his  Holiness  in- 
vites us  to  !  God  forbid  that  America  should  ever 
accept  the  invitation ! 

Much  fear  of  a  revolution  is  felt  here.  Com- 
paratively few  strangers  are  here  now,  on  that  ac- 
count. The  people  of  the  middle  classes  are  very 
restive,  and  the  slightest  provocation  would  cause  a 
rising  of  the  masses.  If  the  French  troops  were 
withdrawn,  it  is  said  the  Vatican  would  be  invaded 
in  less  than  two  hours,  and  certain  reforms  de- 
manded of  his  Holiness,  the  refusal  of  which  would 
cost  him  his  head.  With  all  his  pomp  and  display, 
the  Pope  is  sitting  upon  the  brink  of  a  volcano — and 
he  knows  it.  A  few  days  ago,  in  one  of  the  coffee- 
houses here,  the  portrait  of  the  Pope  was  taken 
down,  and  that  of  Victor  Emanuel  put  up  in  its  stead. 
One  of  the  Imperial  police  ordered  the  picture  taken 
down  immediately,  whereupon  the  coffee-house 
keeper  politely  requested  the  policeman  to  go  to  the 
d — 1.  For  such  an  act  twelve  months  ago,  the  per- 
petrator would  have  been  hurried  off  to  prison  and 
never  heard  of  any  more.  JSTow,  they  dare  not  ar- 
rest him,  for  fear  of  a  popular  outbreak. 

I  suppose  this  letter  is  nearly  long  enough.  I 
have  written  rather  at  random,  not  having  time  to 
take  pains,  because  there  is  so  much  to  be  seen. 
You  see  I  have  omitted  the  usual  "rigmarole"  of 
letter-writers,  about  the  ruins,  galleries,  etc.,  etc., 
because  what  I  could  write  on  those  subjects  would 


ual's  travels.  169 

be  but  a  rehash  of  what  you  have  read  in  books  and 
newspapers  from  your  youth  up.  I  can  say  to  you, 
however,  that  I  have  seen  those  things  and  enjoyed 
them  extensively.  To-day  I  stood  by  Pompey's 
statue,  at  the  foot  of  which  "Great  Cjfisar  fell."  A 
red  place  is  on  the  leg  and  foot  of  the  statue,  which 
"they  say"  is  the  blood  of  Capsar.  That  is  like 
other  Roman  traditions. 

I  wrote  the  foregoing  last  night.  Did  not  get  oft' 
to  Naples  this  morning.  We  have  understood  that 
the  road  is  infested  with  banditti,  and  our  little 
party  have  determined  to  go  by  sea.  "Will  remain 
here  three  days  longer,  and  then  take  ship  at  that 
delightful  city  of  Civita  Vecchia.  I  am  happy  to 
inform  you  that  my  elderly  friend  Smith  is  going 
with  us.  I  shall  try  to  persuade  him  to  go  to  Egypt. 
He  says  he  is  afraid  if  he  stays  in  Rome  his  wife 
will  break  him  by  having  "photographs"  of  herself 
painted. 

Upon  reaching  Naples,  the  first  place  I  go  to  shall 
be  Mt.  Vesuvius,  for,  as  Pat  said  of  the  oyster,  I 
shall  "be  afther  looking  into  the  cratur"  after  which 
I  will  drop  you  a  line.     Till  then,  farewell. 

Hal. 


170  hal's  travels, 


LETTER  XVIII. 

ROME. 

I  VEBiLY  believe  that  the  most  sedate  donkey  in 
all  Italy  (donkeys  are  the  gravest  of  creatures  in 
this  country)  would  lose  his  gravity  and  compromise 
his  dignity,  in  the  presence  of  my  good  old  friend 
Smith.  I  had  made  up  my  mind  to  write  you  a 
very  grave  letter  to-night,  and  had  actually  com- 
menced one  in  the  most  dolorous  strain,  about  the 
wails  and  sobs  of  the  dying  year — this  being  about 
the  last  hour  of  the  last  day  of  the  last  week  of  the 
last  month  of  the  good  old  year  1859.  Yes,  I  had 
conjured  up  some  wise  sayings  for  the  occasion,  and 
was  just  on  the  point  of  spreading  myself  on  this 
most  fruitful  theme  for  would-be  pathetic  writers, 
when  lo !  Avho  should  enter  but  my  venerable  friend 
Smith,  looking  as  much  like  the  ghost  of  the  de- 
parting year  as  it  is  possible  for  man  to  look.  His 
jaw  was  hanging  low,  and  sadness  peered  from  be- 
neath his  shaggy  brows.  Deep  trouble — almost  de- 
spair— sat  upon  every  lineament  of  his  rubicund  face. 
His  usual  sprightliness  was  gone,  and  I  fancied  that 
the  crows-feet  in  the  corners  of  his  eyes  were  more 
deeply  marked  than  I  had  ever  seen  them.     Know- 


HAL'S    TRAVELS.  171 

lug  Smitli  as  I  have  previously  known  him — alwaj's 
lively  and  in  the  best  humor  in  the  world — his 
seriousness  only  appeared  to  me  in  a  comic  light, 
and  I  could  not  resist  the  inclination  to  laugh  right 
out.  He  was  greatly  surprised  at  my  rude  merri- 
ment, and  the  surprise,  added  to  Lis  woe-begone  look, 
redoubled  the  comicality  of  the  scene,  and  I  laughed 
the  more.  Burton  would  give  all  he's  worth  to  be 
able  to  put  on  such  a  face. 

The  old  gentleman  was  in  trouble,  and  had  come 
in  to  unburden  himself  to  me.  His  handsome  young 
wife  was  in  a  pet.  He  said  she  was  in  one  of  her 
"tantrums,"  and  had  "  her  back  up"  furiously ;  that 
she  had  been  for  f(3ur  hours  engaged,  with  the  as- 
sistance of  two  maids,  in  packing  her  trunks  for  a 
start  to  Naples  to-morrow  morning,  and  that  they 
were  but  little  nearer  packed  now  than  they  were 
four  hours  ago  ;  he  had  offered  to  assist  her,  but 
she  spurned  the  offer,  and  had  actually  called  him 
an  "old  fool,"  which  he  said  was  very  near  correct. 
Upon  his  attempting  to  pacif}"  her,  she  peremptorily 
ordered  liim  out  of  the  room.  All  this  he  told  me 
"with  a  burst  of  confidence,"  but  palliated  her 
oifence  by  saying  that  she  was  a  "dear  good  crea- 
ture" when  in  a  good  humor.  He  thinks  that  she 
only  lacks  a  little  age  and  experience,  which  time 
will  remedy.  There  was  another  source  of  griev- 
ance. The  old  gentleman  had  gone  to  a  barber- 
shop to  have  his  hair  trimmed,  late  this  evening. 
Not  being  able  to  speak  Italian,  he  measured  on  his 
finger,  and  showed  the  barber  how  much  he  wanted 


172  hal's  travels. 

taken  off",  (about  half  an  inch.)  The  barber,  not  fully 
comprehending  his  instructions,  instead  of  cutting 
olF  half  an  inch,  cut  it  off  to  within  half  an  inch  of 
the  scalp.  He  took  off  his  hat  to  show  me  how  the 
villainous  barber  had  served  him,  and  I  laughed 
immoderately — could  n't  help  it — at  the  grotesque 
spectacle.  His  hair  is  of  an  iron-gray  color,  and 
very  coarse,  and  each  particular  hair  bristled  straight 
out.  Who  could  help  laughing?  But  the  deep  sigh 
of  the  old  man  brought  me  back  to  my  senses,  and 
I  sighed  with  him — especially  when  I  thought  of 
his  domestic  troubles. 

I  spoke  of  these  troubles  as  little  petty  annoy- 
ances to  which  every  man  was  liable,  and  then  did 
what  I  could  to  lead  the  mind  of  Mr.  Smith  to  other 
things,  which  was  not  hard  to  do.  "We  talked  about 
what  we  had  seen  in  Rome,  and  how  we  had  en- 
joyed our  sojourn  and  our  many  pleasant  strolls 
among  the  ruins,  and  the  great  and  splendid 
churches.  He  soon  forgot  the  "tantrums"  of  Mrs. 
S.,  and  actually  laughed  heartily  at  some  of  his  own 
jokes,  (he  is  fond  of  getting  off  jokes,)  one  of 
which  I  thought  pretty  good.  We  to-day  visited 
the  church  of  the  Jesuits,  to  witness  the  closing 
ceremonies  of  the  Christmas  holidays.  It  is  a  rich 
church,  and  I  asked  him  what  he  thought  of  it? 
Said  he  thought  it  "the  best  organized"  church  we 
had  seen  in  Eome.  It  contains  five  organs.  That 
was  the  best  witticism  I  ever  knew  Smith  to  get  off. 
After  getting  in  a  thorough  good  humor,  he  pro- 
ceeded to  empty  his  huge  overcoat  pocket  of  twenty 


iial's  travels.  173 

or  thirty  pieces  of  marble  and  brick  upon  my  table, 
saying  that  he  wanted  to  show  me  some  fine  speci- 
mens he  had  picked  up  in  his  rambles,  (for,  like 
everybody  else,  he  gathers  relics.)  I  asked  him  if 
he  knew  where  they  all  came  from.  Said  he  knew 
where  some  of  them  came  from.  Took  up  a  beau- 
tiful piece  of  porphyry  and  asked  where  he  got  it. 
Did  n't  know.  Asked  him  where  a  pretty  piece  of 
marble  came  from.  Said  he  thought  he  got  that 
from  the  tomb  of  the  African  we  had  visited  a  day 
or  two  ago.  (He  meant  the  tomb  of  Scipio  Afri- 
canus.)  Asked  him  where  he  got  the  piece  of  brick. 
Did  not  exactly  remember  the  name  of  the  place, 
but  knew  very  well  where  it  was :  that  great  circular 
concern  that  stands  just  beyond  the  Forum — (the 
Coliseum.)  As  to  the  rest  of  his  specimens,  he 
knew  not  where  they  were  from.  All  he  cared  for, 
he  said,  was  to  know  that  he  had  got  them  in  Rome. 
I  thought  there  was  something  even  in  that. 

After  a  chat  of  nearly  two  hours  over  our  adven- 
tures in  Rome,  and  our  anticipated  adventures  in 
]^aples,  speculating  upon  the  weather,  and  the  pros- 
pect of  a  smooth  sea  to  sail  over  to-morrow,  my 
venerable  friend  gathered  up  his  rocks  and  departed 
for  his  own  room,  saying,  as  a  shade  of  melancholy 
passed  over  his  face,  that  he  hoped  the  madam  had 
finished  packing.  Poor  Smith  !  A  kinder-hearted 
man  never  trod  the  earth,  but  I  fear  he  will  never 
again  know  any  thing  of  conjugal  happiness.  He 
is  a  good  man,  and,  although  he  may  not  know  how 
to  keep  a  hotel,  he  is  worthy  of  a  better  wife  than 


174  iial's  travels. 

the  young  giddy  thing  to  whom  he  is  yoked.  May 
she  grow  wiser  and  better ! 

I  am  again  packed  for  I^aples,  and  shall  be  off  to- 
morrow morning  by  rail  for  Civita  Vecchia,  where  I 
shall  again  embark  upon  the  deep  blue  sea.  Since 
my  last  letter  I  have  been  employed  in  walking  about 
the  city,  revisiting  noted  localities  that  I  had  seen 
before,  and  watching  the  gayety  of  the  Romans,  who 
have  seemed  to  enjoy  the  Christmas  holidays  to  the 
fullest  extent.  The  soldiers,  the  priests,  and  the  po- 
lice put  on  clean  shirts  the  first  of  the  week,  and 
have  looked  much  more  decent  than  usual.  Even 
the  monks  (the  privileged  loafers  of  Rome)  seemed 
to  have  scraped  some  of  the  grease  and  dirt  from 
their  filthy  roljes  and  frightful  hoods,  and  have  act- 
ually tried  to  look  respectable  ;  and  the  beggars  have 
looked  smart  and  good-humored  all  the  week,  and 
have  been  more  exorbitant  in  their  demands  than 
before.  Usually  they  only  ask  for  "  Mezzo  biocho," 
(half  a  cent,)  but  this  week  they  have  confidently 
demanded  a  whole  biocho.  The  principal  churches 
have  been  all  aglow  since  Sunday  last,  and  most  of 
their  relics  have  been  on  public  exhibition.  The 
wonderful  Bambino,  the  miraculous  wooden  baby, 
has  been  shown  every  day,  gratis,  and  the  peasantry 
have  flocked  to  see  it  by  thousands.  Many  have 
been  permitted  to  touch  the  sacred  thing,  and  now 
no  doubt  feel  secure  against  all  accident  or  misfor- 
tune. 

I  have  paid  my  last  visit  to  the  Pantheon,  the 
great  structure  which  has  stood  whole  and  perfect 


•  ual's  travels.  175 

tlu'ougliout  so  many  ages.  It  was  built  maii}^  years 
before  the  birth  of  our  Saviour,  and  now  looks  like 
it  might  weather  a  thousand  more  stormy  winters. 
Its  dome  is  the  largest  in  the  world.  I  have  also 
seen  for  the  last  time  the  great  wonder  of  the  world, 
St.  Peter's,  the  Coliseum,  the  Roman  Forum  and 
its  very  interesting  surroundings,  the  ruins  of  the 
palace  of  the  Csesars,  the  Caraculla  Baths,  and  the 
Arches  of  Septimus  Severus  and  Titus,  both  of 
which  have  stood  much  longer  than  the  Pantheon. 
Have  again  been  in  the  house  of  the  Apostle  Paul, 
and  in  his  prison.  To  all  these  things  I  have  bid  fare- 
well, sorry  that  I  cannot  remain  longer  in  Rome  to 
see  and  learn  more  of  its  antiquities. 

At  half-past  two  o'clock  to-day  I  went  to  the 
church  of  the  Jesuits  to  hear  the  grand  Te  Deum, 
which  closes  the  holidays.  The  music  was  heavenly. 
The  proceedings  were  pretty  much  the .  same  that  I 
saw  in  St.  Peter's  on  Christmas  day,  except  that  the 
Pope  was  not  brought  in  on  the  platform  with  the 
canopy  over  his  head,  and  the  peacock-tails  beside 
him.  The  old  man  walked  in  this  time.  He  was 
brought  to  the  church  from  his  palace  in  a  coach 
that  looked  like  it  might  have  been  made  of  beaten 
gold,  drawn  by  four  black  horses,  followed  by  the 
coaches  of  his  cardinals,  and  guarded  by  a  regiment 
of  soldiers.  I  thought  it  strange  that  the  great  in- 
fallible vicar  of  God  should  have  to  be  thus  guarded 
by  the  puny  arm  of  man,  not  only  in  the  street,  but 
in  the  sanctuary !  But  hark  !  The  clock  is  now 
striking  twelve.     The  old  year  is  bringing  his  last 


176  iial's  travels. 

gasp.  .  .  .  The  clock  has  ceased !  1859  is  no 
more  !  Rolled  up  as  a  worn  garment,  and  laid  away, 
to  be  brought  forth  no  more  till  the  great  resurrec- 
tion, when  all  things,  both  new  and  old,  shall  ap- 
pear !  The  new  year  is  before  us,  and  it  is  meet 
that  we  enter  upon  it  with  clean  hands ;  and  that 
your  correspondent  may  do  his  duty  in  that  respect, 
he  will  cease  scribbling  for  to-night,  and  go  to  bed, 
with  a  promise  to  write  from  Naples. 

Yours,  as  ever,        Hal. 


hal's   travels.  17T 


LETTER    XIX. 

ROMETONAPLES. 

In  company  -vvitli  many  others,  I  left  the  "Eternal 
City"  the  morning  of  the  first  instant.  Friend 
Smith  and  the  Madam  were  along.  She  was  all 
smiles,  and  he  was  in  raptures.  He  told  me  in  the 
most  confident  manner  that  Jie  really  thought  her 
"the  dearest  thing  in  the  world;"  that  she  had 
actually  kissed  him,  the  night  previous,  to  heal  his 
wounded  feelings.  The  kiss  melted  him ;  and  on 
the  spot  he  promised  her  a  splendid  set  of  corals, 
as  soon  as  they  reached  Naples.  Said  she  had  pro- 
mised never  to  call  him  an  "  old  fool"  again.  Smith 
believes  her,  and  is  happy.  May  his  happiness 
continue ! 

Two  hours'  ride  on  the  rail  brought  us  to  that 
delectable  sea-port  mentioned  in  a  previous  letter — 
Civita  Vecehia.  The  usual  number  of  beggars  and 
porters  set  upon  us ;  but,  being  strong-handed,  we 
fought  them  off'.  Smith  broke  his  umbrella  over 
the  head  of  a  big,  greasy,  red-capped  fellow,  and 
then  fell  into  a  cursing  fit,  which  lasted  for  half  an 
hour.  After  wandering  over  the  town  for  an  hour, 
we  at  length  found  the  proper  place — a  filthy  little 


178  HAL'S    TRAVELS. 

den — to  get  onr  passports  vised;  wliich  done,  we 
made  a  vigorous  charge,  routed  the  enemy,  and  got 
to  the  wharf,  and  from  there  to  the  fine  steamer 
Capitol,  whicli  lay  in  the  bay.  Steamed  out  of  the 
bay  at  four  o'clock,  and  took  our  course  towards 
Naples.  The  sky  was  clear,  the  air  was  balmy,  and 
the  deep  blue  Mediterranean  as  calm  and  placid  as 
a  sleeping  infant ;  and  to  add  to  the  pleasure  of  a 
night  voyage,  the  "bright  silver  moon"  was  again 
abroad  in  the  heavens.  A  little  after  sunrise  on  the 
following  morning  we  entered  the  world-renowned 
bay  of  ]!^aples.  As  everybody  who  visits  Naples 
has  something  to  say  about  the  beauty  of  its  bay, 
the  city  and  its  environs,  you  will  excuse  me  for 
omitting  that  part  of  the  ceremonj^ ;  only  I  will 
say  that  if  any  one  should  tell  you  that  the  pano- 
rama presented  is  not  perfectly  beautiful,  you  may 
take  it  for  granted  that  that  person  never  saw  the 
sight.  A  semi-circle  of  snow-white  buildings,  ex- 
tending ten  or  twelve  miles  along  the  margin  of  a 
placid  bay,  backed  by  an  amphitheatre  of  bold 
mountains  rearing  back  against  the  deep  blue  sky, 
with  the  smoky  funnel  of  the  terrible  old  Vesuvius 
in  the  midst,  could  not  be  any  thing  else  than  beau- 
tiful— could  it  ? 

Naples  is  a  funny  place.  As  soon  as  our  steamer 
anchored  in  the  bay,  it  was  surrounded  by  a  fleet 
of  the  funniest-looking  boats,  rowed  by  the  most 
comical-looking  men  you  ever  saw,  all  wearing  red 
caps,  a  hat  being  a  luxury  they  never  aspire  to. 
And  then  such  a  chattering,  and  such  a  jabbering. 


hal's  travels.  179 

and  such  pantomimic  exertions,  oftcring  tlieir  boats 
to  take  passengers  asliore  !  Tliey  were  almost  as 
vociferous  as  a  bevy  of  New  York  hack-drivers. 
After  remaining  on  the  steamer  two  hours,  the 
police  graciously  gave  us  permission  to  land ; 
whereupon  we  bundled  ourselves  into  the  funny 
boats,  and  wore  rowed  by  the  comical  men  to  the 
custom-liouse,  where  the  officers,  in  their  funny 
little  short-tail  coats,  and  cunning  little  silver-laced 
caps,  proceeded  to  dive  most  savagely  into  the  bag- 
gage of  ever}'  man  who  failed  to  slip  a  couple  of  pauls 
into  their  hands.  An}-  thing  can  be  smuggled  into 
the  port  of  Naples  for  two  pauls,  (twenty-two  cents.) 
And  here  we  are  in  Naples.  AVhat  crowds  of 
people,  and  how  filthy  they  all  look !  and  such 
chattering  and  begging — and  such  poor,  hungry- 
looking  wretches  !  Hard,  gaunt  poverty  is  here  ! 
And  yet,  destitute  and  hungry  as  they  look, 
they  crack  jokes  and  laugh  with  one  another. 
Many  are  at  work  in  the  open  streets,  some  making 
shoes,  some  spinning,  some  tinkering,  and  here  and 
there  an  old  woman,  seated  by  a  small  kettle  of 
coals,  broiling  fish,  which  she  serves  hot  from  the 
fire,  to  all  who  have  the  wherewith  to  pay  for  them. 
And  merchants  in  every  line  are  here,  hawking 
their  wares — apples,  oranges,  figs,  maccaroni,  cakes, 
pies,  bread,  nuts,  etc.,  etc. — all  yelling  at  the  top  of 
their  voices,  praising  their  own  merchandise.  Babel 
was  a  small  aft'air,  as  far  as  confusion  is  concerned, 
compared  to  ]N'ai)les.  And  here  go  the  donkeys, 
(the  donkey  is  one  of  the  institutions  of  this  city, 


180  hal's   travels. 

and  the  owner  of  a  donkey  is  considered  a  respect- 
able property-holder,)  the  least  imaginable  crea- 
tures, carrying  loads  of  the  most  prodigious  size. 
Here  goes  one  with  a  load  of  vegetables,  enough  to 
load  a  two-horse  wagon,  and  there  goes  one  under 
a  mound  of  hay.  You  see  nothing  but  his  ears. 
Another,  with  a  load  of  wood.  And  here  comes  a 
little  fellow,  trotting  merrily  along,  jingling  his 
bells,  drawing  a  two-wheeled  carriage  with  ten 
burly  men  and  a  slouchy  woman.  As  to  carrying 
burdens  and  drawing  loads,  the  donkey  is  all  in  all, 
here.  I  say  again,  i^aples  is  a  funny  city.  It  is  a 
large  city — second  to  none  in  Europe,  except  Lon- 
don and  Paris  ;  well  built,  with  the  houses  reaching 
from  four  to  six  stories  high,  and  is,  withal,  as  filthy 
as  any  four  cities  I  ever  saw,  leaving  out  the  old 
part  of  Rome.  I  have  not  yet  been  able  to  count 
the  number  of  odors  here ;  but  I  think  there  must 
be  several  hundred  "well-defined  stinks."  But  let 
me  not  be  understood  as  condemning  the  whole  of 
Naples.  There  are  decent  places.  One  long,  broad 
street  (don't  remember  its  name)  is  filled  with  rich 
and  brilliant  shops,  reminding  one  of  Paris ;  and 
one  or  two  others  are  passable,  while  the  Kiug's 
Garden,  which  stretches  along  the  bay,  is  one  of  the 
most  beautiful  promenades  I  ever  saw. 

Our  first  excursion  after  reaching  l^aples,  was  to 
the  resurrected  city  of  Pompeii,  It  is  much  more 
extensive  than  I  expected  to  find  it.  It  is  perfectly 
wonderful  to  see  a  great  city  brought  again  to  light, 
after  being  buried  and  its  site  forgotten  for  more 


hal's  travels.  181 

tbau  seventeen  hundred  years.  Two-thirds  of  the 
city  yet  remain  buried ;  but  the  part  discovered 
shows  it  to  have  been  a  city  of  much  beauty.  It 
must  have  been  very  old  at  the  time  of  its  destruc- 
tion ;  for  the  solid  stone-paved  streets  are  deeply 
worn  with  carriage-wheels.  The  remains  of  gor- 
geous palaces,  two  large  theatres,  and  an  amphi- 
theatre capable  of  seating  twenty-live  thousand 
people,  besides  hundreds  of  shops  and  other  houses, 
have  been  exhumed.  The  Villa  of  Diomedes  was 
a  very  grand  building,  and  in  the  large  wine-cellar 
beneath  it  still  remain  the  wine-jars,  just  as  they 
were  left  the  day  the  city  was  engulfed.  The 
house  of  Caius  Sallust  is  one  of  the  largest  that  has 
been  discovered.  The  floor  of  every  house  is  of 
the  finest  mosaic ;  finer  than  any  modern  mosaics  I 
have  seen.  Almost  every  street  corner  was  supplied 
with  a  fountain.  But  it  is  useless  for  me  to  try  to 
tell  you  about  Pompeii  in  a  letter.  Its  immersion 
and  resurrection  are  known  already  to  every  intelli- 
gent reader.  Before  visiting  Pompeii,  my  friend 
Smith  thought  it  was  a  humbug,  gotten  up  by  the 
Neapolitans  to  get  money  out  of  travellers.  He  is 
now  satisfied  that  it  is  no  humbug.  AVe  spent  a 
day  walking  about  its  solitary  streets. 

But  little  of  Ilerculaneum  has  yet  been  disco- 
vered. It  lies  buried  in  lava  that  is  harder  than 
limestone,  forty  feet  beneath  the  surface,  and  an- 
other town  now  stands  above  it.  We  saw  all  of  it  in 
an  hour.  Tlie  theatre  is  the  most  important  building 
discovered.     It  is  of  immense  size.     Ilerculaneum 


182  iial's  travels. 

will  for  ever  remain  a  hidden  mystery ;  for  it  cannot 
be  exhumed  without  destro^nng  the  city  that  stands 
above  it;  and  that  wouldn't  pay. 

We  spent  one  day  in  the  Museum  where  the 
things  found  at  Pompeii  and  Hcrculaneum  are  kept. 
There  is  much  fine  statuary,  both  in  marble  and 
bronze ;  also  household  utensils  of  every  descrip- 
tion. It  is  intensely  interesting  to  look  upon  these 
relics,  which  are  nearly  two  thousand  years  old. 
Loaves  of  bread,  baked  so  long  ago,  are  exhibited, 
with  the  name  of  the  baker  stamped  upon  them. 

Yesterday  seems  to  have  been  the  day  pitched 
upon  by  nearly  every  American  in  Naples  (twenty- 
nine  in  number)  to  visit  Mount  Vesuvius.  All, 
with  one  accord,  met  at  Racina,  the  town  which 
stands  above  the  submerged  Ilerculaneum.  That 
is  the  place  from  which  the  ascension  begins.  Our 
debut  into  the  village  was  hailed  with  a  shout  of 
gladness  by  the  proprietors  of  donkeys,  and  all 
their  friends.  It  was  a  holiday,  and  the  people 
were  all  idle ;  therefore  the  crowd  which  surrounded 
us  was  immense.  Every  man,  or  at  least  every 
man's  friend,  had  a  donkey  to  hire ;  and  each  man 
did  his  level  best  to  talk  louder  than  his  neighbor 
in  praise  of  his  own  or  his  friend's  donkey.  They 
quarrelled  and  cursed  each  other,  and  crowded 
about  us  in  such  a  manner  that  we  seemed  in  immi- 
nent danger  of  being  trodden  under  foot.  Finally, 
after  an  immense  amount  of  hard  swearing  and 
scuffling  among  the  donkey  men,  twenty-nine  of 
the  diminutive  creatures  were  saddled  and  mounted 


HAL'S    TRAVELS.  183 

by  twenty-nine  Americans — nearly  an  equal  num- 
ber of  ladies  and  gentlemen.  Every  donkey  must 
needs  have  a  driver,  and  here  a  battle  ensued 
among  the  boys  as  to  who  should  go  as  drivers. 
The  stoutest  soon  fanned  out  the  less  •muscular, 
and  the  conquerors  took  their  places  beside  the 
donkej's.  At  the  word  of  our  guide,  we  started  off, 
single  file,  in  a  brisk  trot.  The  ladies  not  being 
used  to  such  a  mode  of  locomotion,  were  fright- 
ened ;  and  some  of  them  set  up  a  succession  of 
those  interesting  little  screams  peculiar  to  such  of 
the  "dimity  institution"  as  scream  at  the  sight  of  a 
lizard  or  a  toad.  The  donkeys,  in  response,  set  up 
a  braying,  and  this,  added  to  the  cries  and  shouts 
of  the  men,  women,  and  children  that  lined  the 
way  on  either  side,  created  a  noise  and  confusion 
hardly  surpassed  by  a  mob  at  a  New  York  muni- 
cipal election.  Friend  Smith  says  he  never  saw  or 
heard  the  like  before ;  and  Smith  is  an  old  man. 

A  ride  of  an  hour  and  a  half  brought  us  to  the 
foot  of  the  cone,  the  place  where  the  donkeys  must 
be  left,  and  from  which  those  who  would  look  into 
the  crater  must  exercise  their  powers  of  climbing. 
It  is  a  serious  undertaking,  and  those  who  have  not 
good  muscles  and  stout  boots  had  better  not  under- 
take it.  Of  the  twenty-nine  who  started  up,  only 
nine  reached  the  summit.  Your  correspondent  was 
one  of  the  nine.  The  twenty  contented  themselves 
with  going  to  the  lower  crater,  a  new  one  that  has 
not  been  long  in  existence.  The  lava  is  pouring 
out  of  it  in  a  fine  large  stream.     I  lighted  my  pipe, 


184  iial's   travels. 

and  smoked  beside  the  great  stream  of  liquid  fire. 
Getting  to  tlie  summit  was  about  as  hard  an  hour's 
work  as  I  ever  did.  Two  ladies  of  the  party  suc- 
ceeded in  getting  up.  "What  we  saw  of  the  crater 
was — nothing  !  We  walked  along  the  brink  of  what 
seemed  a  great  "jumping-off  place,"  but  the  smoke 
was  so  dense  we  could  not  see  twenty  feet  down. 
The  fumes  of  sulphur  were  so  strong  that  we  could 
not  remain  near  the  brink  of  the  opening  more  than 
half  a  minute  at  a  time. 

The  funniest  part  of  the  business  was  coming  down 
the  mountain,  running,  jumping,  rolling,  tumbling, 
and  sliding  down  the  steep  cone  in  the  ashes.  I  en- 
joyed the  fun  so  much  that  I  was  really  sorr^^  when 
the  base  was  reached. 

"Without  being  tedious,  I  will  merely  say  that  we 
returned  to  our  donkeys,  and  wended  our  way  back 
to  Eacina,  finishing  the  descent  by  moonlight.  Got 
back  to  our  hotel  in  ITaples  about  8  o'clock,  having 
been  occupied  eleven  hours  in  the  excursion. 

But  does  it  pay  ?  Much  as  a  bargain.  It  don't 
more  than  pay,  although  it  may  be  about  a  fair  trade. 
You  are  jperhajps  compensated  for  the  labor  of  going 
up,  by  the  fun  of  coming  down.  Certain,  you  do 
not  see  enough  to  make  it  a  paying  business.  The 
most  interesting  part  of  the  day's  excursion  to  me 
was  the  row  among  the  donkey  men  and  boys  at 
Racina,  and  the  start  from  that  place.     It  was  rich. 

Smith  says  he  never  until  now  believed  the  story 
about  burning  mountains.     He  's  satisfied. 

On  Tuesday  next  I  leave  this  funny  city  of  Naples 


iial's  travels.  185 

for  Egypt  and  Palestine.  There  will  be  fourteen  in 
the  party — all  Americans.  AVe  sail  first  to  Malta, 
then  to  Alexandria,  and  thence  to  Grand  Cairo. 
Expect  to  go  up  the  Nile,  and  see  much  of  the 
country  once  ruled  by  the  Pharaohs.  Shall  look 
with  deep  interest  upon  the  places  once  inhabited 
b}^  the  Israelites,  while  in  bondage  under  the  tyran- 
nical Egyptians.  Will  go  to  the  place  where  they 
crossed  the  Ked  Sea  when  led  out  by  God  under  the 
direction  of  Moses,  and  where  Pharaoh  and  his  host 
were  drowned.  After  that  we  shall  go  to  Jerusalem 
and  many  other  parts  of  the  Holy  Land,  about  which 
I  will  write  you  after  I  have  seen  them. 

I  am  sorry  to  leave  Naples  so  soon.  There  are 
many  pleasant  excursions  in  the  neighborhood  I 
would  like  to  make.  Besides,  it  is  a  pleasant  place 
to  stop.  Living  is  fine ;  plenty  of  macaroni,  and 
an  abundance  of  goats'  and  asses'  milk.  The  milk- 
merchants  here,  instead  of  carrying  their  milk  round 
in  tin  vessels,  as  in  some  other  cities,  go  to  the 
houses  of  their  customers  with  a  flock  of  goats 
bleating  at  their  heels,  and  milk  them  in  the  houses 
of  those  who  bu3\  This  insures  to  the  purchaser 
pure,  unadulterated  milk.     This  is  sensible. 

Hal. 

P.  S. — Glorious  news  !  Madam  Smith  has  made 
up  her  mind  to  go  to  Egypt,  and  so  I  shall  not  be 
so  suddenly  deprived  of  the  company  of  my  good 
friend  Smith.  He  does  not  want  to  go  ;  but  that  is 
nothing.     The  madam  has  made  up  her  mind  !    He 


186  iial's   travels. 

lias  just  been  in  to  tell  me  about  it.     His  face  is 
rather  elongated  this  evening. 

We  commit  ourselves  again  to  the  vasty  deep  on 
Tuesday,  the  10th. 


iial's  travels.  187 


LETTER   XX. 

NAPLES     TO     EGYPT. 

If  yon  knew  the  difficulties  whicli  surronnd  your 
correspondent  at  this  time,  you  would  certainly 
appreciate  this  eflbrt  of  his  to  write  you  a  letter. 
He  is  seated  •  in  a  very  narrow  little  state-room, 
two  by  six  feet,  on  board  one  of  the  most  dimi- 
nutive steamers  that  ever  attempted  the  voyage 
across  the  Mediterranean,  his  knees  and  the  back 
of  a  book  doing  the  duty  of  a  writing-desk.  He 
is  doing  his  level  best  to  maintain  a  perpendicular, 
but  evidently  fails,  as  is  seen  by  his  head  coming  in 
contact,  first  with  the  berth  on  the  one  side,  and  the 
wall  on  the  other,  caused  by  the  masterly  efforts  of 
the  little  steamer  to  mount  the  ponderous  waves  so 
peculiar  to  the  middle  of  the  Great  Sea.  Still,  not- 
withstanding the  waves,  and  the  nausea  produced 
thereby,  he  persists,  determined  to  get  oif  an  epistle 
of  some  sort,  which,  under  the  circumstances,  you 
cannot  expect  to  be  either  long  or  brilliant. 

"A  life  on  the  ocean  wave"  will  do  well  enough 
to  talk  about,  and  is  a  pretty  thing  when  well  sung 
with  a  good  accompaniment,  but  a  life  on  the 
ocean  wave  in  reality  is  not  the  thing  it  is  cracked 


188  hal's  travels. 

up  to  be.  The  "  flashing  brine,  the  spray,  and  the 
tempest  roar"  are  sublime  things,  in  the  distance, 
suggestive  of  any  amount  of  poetry,  but,  upon  a 
familiar  approach,  the  poetry  vanishes  like  a  thing 
of  air.  To  those  who  love  good  dinners  and  quiet 
stomachs  thereafter,  I  would  say,  "  Go  not  down  to 
the  sea  in  ships."  I  say  this  from  experience,  having 
been  for  the  past  four  days  riding  upon  the  raging 
billows  of  the  deep  blue  sea,  where  sharks  do  swim, 
and  monsters  of  the  vasty  deep  do  congregate. 

Four  daj's  ago  we  glided  out  of  the  beautiful 
Bay  of  Naples,  with  as  clear  a  sky  and  as  smooth 
a  sea  as  heart  could  wish.  Our  little  party  rejoiced 
with  exceeding  gladness  at  the  prospect  of  a  plea- 
sant voyage  to  the  land  of  the  Pharaohs.  Song  and 
merriment  were  kept  up  on  board  the  ship  through- 
out the  da}^,  and  until  a  late  hour  at  night.  My 
friend  Smith  was  in  ecstasies,  and  even  his  hand- 
some young  wife  condescended  to  entertain  the  com- 
pany with  "Annie  Laurie"  and  the  "Prairie  Flower," 
which  she  sang  to  perfection,  accompanied  with  the 
guitar.  Smith  told  me  he  thought  her  voice  an- 
gelic. 

Early  the  next  morning  we  found  ourselves  in  the 
strait,  and  opposite  the  city  of  Messina,  on  the 
picturesque  island  of  Sicily.  Here  our  ship  stopped 
four  hours,  giving  us  time  to  "  do  up"  Messina. 
Without  entering  into  any  description  of  this  city, 
I  will  only  say  that  it  is  a  second  edition  of  Kaples 
on  a  small  scale,  very  handsome  at  a  distance. 

About  the  time  we   sailed  from    Messina,   the 


hal's  travels.  189 

lieaveus  became  dark,  and  in  an  hour  the  wind 
blew  great  guns,  lashing  the  sea  into  foaming  bil- 
lows, while  the  rain  came  down  in  torrents.  Our 
little  steamer  reared  and  pitched  like  a  little  dog  in 
high  oats,  riding  the  great  waves  like  a  thing  of  life. 
The  passengers  were  all  huddled  together  in  the 
saloon,  and  the  most  sober  stillness  prevailed.  A 
more  grave  and  serious  company  I  never  saw,  ex- 
cept Smith,  who  boasts  that  he  is  never  sea-sick. 
A  joke  under  such  circumstances  I  thought  really 
barbarous — in  very  bad  taste,  to  say  the  least — but 
Smith  persisted  in  getting  oil'  two  or  three  of  the 
most  shocking  kind,  which,  however,  nobody 
laughed  at  but  himself.  The  vomiting  brought 
about  by  the  agitation  of  the  waters,  he  heartlessly 
called  "casting  up  accounts,"  and  laughed  at  it  as 
a  joke.  But  the  merriment  of  Mr.  Smith  was  soon 
brought  to  an  abrupt  termination,  for  the  illness  of. 
Mrs.  S.  became  very  violent.  She  heaved  and 
groaned  in  great  agony.  Said  she  thought  she 
would  die.  Smith  became  earnest,  and  told  her 
not  to  think  of  such  a  thing.  She  declared  she 
would  die.  Smith  begged  her  not  to  do  so.  She 
asserted  roundly  and  positively  that  she  would  not 
live  half  an  hour,  when  Smith  cried — called  her  his 
sweet  angel,  and  begged  her  in  the  most  piteous 
tones,  for  his  sake,  and  for  the  sake  of  a  future 
generation  of  Smiths,  to  live.  His  earnest  persua- 
sions overcame  her,  and  she  lived.  This  affecting 
scene  caused  many  of  us  to  forget  our  own  sickness 
for  the  time,  but  it  returned  in  time  to  remind  us 


190  hal's   travels. 

that  the  storm  was  still  raging.  Towards  ten  o'clock 
at  night  the  violence  of  the  storm  was  spent,  but  the 
sea  continued  rough  enough  to  keep  up  the  sickness 
most  of  the  night.  We  thought  many  times  during 
the  night,  of  the  storm  that  raged  on  these  same 
waters,  some  eighteen  hundred  years  ago,  when  the 
Apostle  Paul  was  making  his  voyage  across  the 
Mediterranean,  an  account  of  which  may  be  found 
in  the  27th  and  28th  chapters  of  the  Acts  of  the 
Apostles.  Early  the  next  morning  we  entered  the 
harbor  of  Malta,  the  place  where  the  apostle  and 
his  company  were  shipwrecked.  The  bay  where 
the  wreck  occurred  is  still  called  St.  Paul's  Bay. 
Malta  is  a  large  and  pretty  city — one  of  the  cleanest 
cities  I  ever  saw — and  to  show  the  intense  passion 
of  the  people  for  cleanliness,  they  tr^^  to  clean  every- 
body who  goes  there  out  of  their  cash.  For  instance, 
a  party  of  us  went  ashore  and  took  breakfast  at  a 
hotel — a  very  small  breakfast,  consisting  of  eggs  and 
coffee — for  which  we  paid  seventy-five  cents  each.  I 
desired  to  lay  in  supplies  there  for  my  Egyptian  tour, 
but  found  the  prices  too  high  for  every  thing  but 
tobacco.  I  shall  always  have  some  respect  for  Malta 
for  furnishing  me  a  good  article  of  chewing-tobacco 
cheap — the  first  I  have  fo.und  this  side  of  ITew  York. 
The  luxury  of  chewing-tobacco  is  unknown  in  other 
portions  of  Europe ;  and  I  advise  all  those  who  are 
fond  of  masticating  the  weed,  to  bring  as  much  with 
them  when  they  come  over  as  they  can  conveniently 
smuggle  in.  Otherwise  they  will  fare  but  middling. 
At  twelve  o'clock  yesterday  we  sailed  from  Malta. 


iial's   travels.  191 

Sea  comparatively  smooth.  Most  of  the  invalids 
were  sunning  themselves  on  deck.  Some  got  quite 
lively,  and  a  song  could  occasionally  be  heard.  We 
Avere  a  mixed  company,  consisting  of  Americans, 
(wlio  predominated,  there  being  fourteen  of  us,) 
French,  Italians,  Greeks,  Maltese,  Germans,  and 
Turks.  We  have  all  languages,  and  a  variety  of 
costumes. 

An  incident  occurred  late  in  the  afternoon,  worth 
mentioning,  perhaps.  Madam  Smith  had  so  far  re- 
covered as  to  be  able  to  get  upon  deck.  She  looked 
charmingly  pale  and  interesting,  and  came  up  smil- 
ing like  an  aurora.  As  she  walked  across  the  deck, 
the  ship  brought  a  sudden  lurch  just  as  her  foot 
came  in  contact  with  a  coil  of  rope,  which  threw  the 
unfortunate  lady  flat  upon  her  face,  and  at  the  same 
instant  a  spanking  breeze  came  whisking  along,  and 
in  the  rudest  manner  took  unmentionable  and  un- 
warrantable liberties  with  her  crinoline,  and 

But  some  scenes  are  indescribable,  and  others  are 
not  proper  to  be  described.  I  will  only  say  that  the 
charming  and  innocent  Madam  S.  retired  to  her 
state-room,  and  has  not  been  seen  since  the  sad 
catastrophe.  Mr.  Smith  informs  me  that  the  occur- 
rence has  had  a  most  shocking  efl:ect  upon  the 
Madam's  nerves. 

This  is  the  fourth  day  of  our  vo^'age.  We  sailed 
in  sight  of  the  coast  of  Africa  all  the  forenoon  to- 
day. An  hour  or  two  ago  the  pilot  pointed  out  to 
me  a  dim  speck  in  the  distance,  Avhich  lie  said  was 
Crete.     That  is  the  island  where  I  think  the  Apostle 


192  HAL'S    TRAVELS. 

Paul  wanted  to  stop  and  winter,  when  sailing  over 
this  sea.  The  sea  is  pretty  rough,  and  with  your 
permission  I  will  stop  writing  now,  and  finish  at 
some  future  time. 

Sunday,  Jan.  15. — We  are  sailing  this  evening 
over  a  tolerably  quiet  sea,  though  it  was  rough 
enough  this  morning.  At  breakfast  it  was  an- 
nounced that  we  would  have  preaching  in  the  saloon 
at  11  o'clock.  (We  have  three  Kew  England 
preachers  in  our  party — all  of  whom  are  of  the 
"immortal  three  thousand.")  When  the  hour  ar- 
rived, only  seven  of  us,  including  the  preacher,  as- 
sembled at  the  place  of  worship,  the  rest  having 
suddenly  relapsed  into  sea-sickness.  The  preacher 
read  the  27th  chapter  of  Acts,  and  after  we  had 
sung  some  old  familiar  hymns,  he  delivered  a  most 
excellent  discourse  from  the  text,  "  If  God  be  for  us, 
who  can  be  against  us  ?"  Nothing  unusual  has  oc- 
curred to-day.  We  are  promised  a  sight  of  Alex- 
andria to-morrow  morning,  and  I  shall  certainly 
hail  the  sight  with  gladness.  Yours,  etc., 

Hal. 


hal's  travels.  198 


LETTER  XXI. 

ALEXANDRIA  —  EGYPT. 

And  so  I  am  in  Egypt — the  land  into  wliich 
Joseph  was  sold  as  a  slave — the  land  of  the  Pha- 
raoh's— the  land  of  the  bondage  of  the  children  of 
Israel — the  land  of  Moses  and  of  Aaron,  and  the 
land  once  cursed  with  ten  plagues.  I  am  in  the 
ancient  city  of  Alexandria,  built  by  Alexander  the 
Great  more  than  three  hundred  years  before  the 
birth  of  our  Saviour.  It  was  in  a  ship  of  Alexandria 
that  Paul  sailed  to  Rome. 

Our  debut  into  this  city  was  funny  enough.  It 
was  early  on  Monday  morning  our  ship  anchored  in 
the  bay.  By  the  time  the  anchor  reached  the  bot- 
tom we  were  surrounded  by  a  multitude  of  boats, 
and  no  less  than  a  hundred  bare-legged,  shirt-tailed, 
turbancd  Turks  and  Egyptians,  and  about  half  that 
number  of  loose-trowsered  brigandish-looking  crea- 
tures, were  mounting  up  the  sides  and  tumbling 
into  our  ship  upon  every  quarter.  I  thought  ISTaples 
was  so77ie  for  noise  and  confusion,  but  it  was  nothing. 
Then  there  was  a  scramble  for  the  baggage.  Every 
yellow-skinned  dog  that  could  lay  his  hands  on  an 
article  of  baggage  seized  it,  and  was  for  lugging  it 
7 


194  iial's  travels. 

into  Ills  boat,  tliinking  thereby  to  secure  the  owner 
of  the  article  for  a  passenger  to  the  shore.  I  held 
on  to  my  carpet-bag,  but  had  to  use  my  stick  freely 
to  keep  the  creatures  from  tearing  it  aAvay  from  me. 
Smith  cursed  and  swore  like  a  madman,  and  vowed 
he  would  shoot  a  score  of  the  scoundrels,  but  un- 
fortunately his  revolver  was  locked  up  in  his  trunk, 
and  his  trunk  gone  he  knew  not  where.  The 
Madam  was  awfully  frightened,  and  for  a  time 
threatened  to  go  into  a  fit.  I  assisted  in  restoring 
her  by  procuring  from  the  steward  a  little  brandy 
and  water — a  wonderful  medicine  to  promote  cour- 
age. Smith  finally  found  his  trunk  in  the  boat  of  a 
big-bearded  fellow,  who  said  he  had  taken  it  from 
a  thief  who  was  running  ofi"  with  it.  Smith  gave 
him  a  shilling  for  rescuing  his  trunk,  and  took  pas- 
sage with  him.  The  big-bearded  fellow  was  the 
rogue  who  had  taken  the  trunk  at  first,  and  then 
invented  the  lie  to  ward  ofi'  the  anger  of  the  owner, 
and  to  get  the  shilling  for  his  honesty.  The  hotel- 
runners  were  out  in  force,  and  pitched  into  us  with 
as  much  earnestness  as  the  boatmen.  Each  one 
praised  his  own  hotel,  and  did  what  he  could  to 
disparage  his  rivals'.  As  ours  is  a  large  party,  we 
had  a  good  deal  of  fun  in  receiving  bids.  Finally 
we  accepted  the  ofifer  of  the  proprietor  of  the  Hotel 
des  Indies,  where  we  have  fared  well  (for  Egypt)  for 
two  days. 

This  is  a  strange  country.  Every  thing  is  so  en- 
tirely different  from  what  I  have  seen  in  America 
and  Europe,  that  I  have  gazed  and  wondered  with 


hal's  travels.  195 

admiration  continually.  The  flowing  trowsers, 
quaint  coats  and  mantles,  picturesque  turbans  and 
Fez  caps — and  then  to  see  all  the  burdens  carried 
upon  camels,  instead  of  wagons — goat-skins  of 
water  carried  upon  asses — all  so  strange  !  Unlike 
our  country  and  Europe,  the  fashions  and  manners 
of  the  Asiatics  never  change.  They  are  the  same 
now  that  they  were  in  the  da3-s  of  Abraham.  Few 
people  walk  here.  Everybody  rides  the  donkey. 
They  stand  ready  saddled  in  great  herds  at  nearly 
ever}^  corner.  I  have  been  on  the  back  of  one  of 
the  nimble  little  creatures  almost  continually,  since 
my  arrival.  Nearly  all  of  our  party  have  done  the 
same.  Our  first  jaunt  was  to  Pompey's  Pillar, 
which  stands  about  a  mile  out,  then  to  Cleopatra's 
jSTeedles,  to  the  Catacombs,  to  the  ruins  of  Ancient 
Alexandria — everywhere.  Riding  is  cheap,  and  we 
ride  to  every  place.  We  go  in  a  gallop  nearly  all 
the  time,  both  ladies  and  gentlemen.  It  is  rare 
fun,  and  no  mistake.  Every  donke}^  has  a  driver 
to  follow,  with  a  stick.  We  have  a  donkey  and  a 
driver  a  whole  day  for  two  shillings.  We  get  the 
worth  of  our  money,  and  I  am  sure  they  earn  all 
they  get.  The  long-legged  drivers  wear  nothing  in 
the  world  but  long  shirts,  and  can  run  all  day.  There 
are  twelve  of  us  who  usuall}^  ride  out  together;  and 
to  see  us  go  dashing  at  full  speed  through  the  streets, 
with  twelve  drivers  yelling  at  our  heels,  makes  the 
quiet  old  Mussulmans  stare  w^ith  no  little  surprise. 
I  guess  they  think  the  Americans  are  strange  crea- 


196  HAL'S    TRAVELS. 

tares.  My  friend  Smitli  says  he  is  sorry  lie  did  uot 
come  to  Egypt  sooner.  Had  no  idea  it  was  sucli  a 
funny  place.  He  curses  tlie  d — d  barbarians  for 
dressing  in  such  outlandish  style,  and  is  not  a  little 
shocked  at  the  practice  of  covering  up  the  faces  of 
the  women,  all  but  the  ejes.  He  swears  he  will 
take  an  Egyptian  donkey  home  with  him.  Wants 
to  ride  a  camel ;  but  we  persuade  him  to  wait  till 
we  reach  Grand  Cairo,  for  which  city  we  leave  to- 
morrow. 

Alexandria  contains  about  80,000  inhabitants. 
The  houses  don't  seem  to  be  built  in  any  particular 
form,  but  seem  to  be  thrown  together  at  random — 
roofs  all  flat,  and  in  the  Turkish  part  of  the  town 
are  seldom  more  than  one  story  high.  The  houses 
are  much  better,  and  the  streets  are  of  a  respectable 
width  in  the  Frank  part  of  the  city.  People  of  all 
nations,  nearly,  live  here — Turks,  Greeks,  Assy- 
rians, Maltese,  Europeans,  Nubians,  etc.,  etc. 

We  have  been  beset  with  a  horde  of  dragomans 
ever  since  our  arrival,  desiring  the  job  of  carrying 
us  up  the  Mle,  or  anywhere  else  we  may  choose  to 
go.  We  have  not  got  our  route  fully  determined 
upon  yet.  We  may  go  from  Cairo  first  to  Mount 
Sinai,  or  we  may  go  up  the  Nile.  It  is  too  early  for 
our  travels  in  Palestine.  We  will  determine  upon 
a  route  when  we  reach  Cairo. 

Smith  says  he  is  glad  he  came  to  Egypt,  because 
there  are  no  noted  painters  or  sculptors  here.  He 
knows  that  Mrs.  S.  would  be  sitting  for  more  pic- 


HAL'S    TRAVELS.  197 

tures  of  herself,  if  she  could  find  a.  painter.  lie 
says  he  knows  she  will  want  to  take  a  camel  home 
with  her. 

In  my  rides  around  here  I  notice  hundreds  of 
Bedouins'  tents  scattered  about  over  the  barren 
sand  hills.  They  look  quite  primitive  and  pic- 
turesque. The  Bedouins  are  a  filthy,  lazy  people, 
and  man}^  of  them,  I  observe,  wear  nothing  but  a 
piece  of  old  shirt,  and  others  are  in  a  state  of 
nature.  Don't  know  how  they  live.  A  whole 
family  will  possess  nothing  in  the  world  but  a  tent 
and  the  few  rags  they  have  on  their  backs.  The 
poorest  people  in  our  country  are  wealthy,  compared 
to  these  poor  wandering  creatures. 


I  had  almost  forgotten  to  tell  you  that  we  paid  a 
visit  to  the  Pasha's  Palace  to-day.  It  is  the  neatest 
and  most  luxurious  establishment  I  have  seen, 
though  not  near  so  large  nor  imposing  as  many  of 
the  palaces  of  Europe.     "Wc  were  required  to  leave 


198  hal's   travels. 

our  shoes  at  the  door,  and  were  furnished  with 
slippers.  The  Pasha  is  not  here  at  present.  Has 
gone  up  to  Cairo.  We  were  not  admitted  into  the 
Harem,  the  palace  of  the  Pasha's  wives,  which 
stands  opposite  the  one  we  entered. 

I  would  write  a  longer  letter,  but  the  mosquitoes 
and  fleas  are  working  upon  me  terribly. 

Yours,  etc.,  Hal. 


iial's  travels.  199 


LETTER   XXII. 

ALEXANDRIA     TO     CAIRO. 

A  WISE  man  has  said  that  "  much  study  is  a  wea- 
rincss  of  the  flesh."  Such  beino;  the  fact,  I  shall 
drop  you  a  few  disjointed  sentences,  gotten  up  with 
the  very  smallest  amount  of  study ;  for,  in  this  de- 
bilitating climate,  it  takes  an  industrious  man 
indeed  to  concoct  a  studied  epistle.  You  must 
remember  your  correspondent  is  now  in  Africa,  a 
country  in  which  industry  is  a  rank  stranger,  and 
likely  to  remain  so. 

Xow,  for  convenience,  and  as  I  am  too  lazy  to 
tell  you  every  thing,  suppose  you  imagine  yourself 
with  me  in  my  journeyings  since  the  date  of  my 
last  letter,  which  was,  I  believe,  from  Alexandria. 
Leaving  the  Hotel  des  Indies  on  the  morning  of 
the  18th  inst.,  we  wend  our  way  through  the 
narrow,  dirty  streets  of  that  city,  in  the  queerest 
omnibus  that  civilized  man  ever  saw.  An  omnibus 
docs  not  accord  with  our  notions  of  Eastern  loco- 
motion, where  camels,  dromedaries,  and  asses  have 
reigned  supreme  ever  since  Ham  and  his  progeny 
peopled  the  land  of  Egypt,  We  are  surprised  to 
see  an  omnibus.     But  hark !     What  familiar  sound 


200  hal's   travels. 

is  that?    A  locomotive  whistle,  as  I  live!    And  is 
it  possible,  you  ask,  that  we  have  to  go  to  Cairo  by 
mere  railroad  ?     It  is  even  so,  my  friend ;  for  a  rail- 
road has  found  its  way  into  Egypt ;  and  as  it  is  the 
best  we  can  do,  we  must  put  up  with  it.     Terrible 
bore  !     But  here  we  are,  at  the  depot.     We  buy  our 
tickets,  or  rather  Mr.  Smith  buys  them  for  us ;  for, 
as   he   is   a   sharp  man  to  drive  a  trade,  we  have 
elected  him  treasurer  and  captain  of  our  party.     He 
is  proud  of  his  position,  and  spares  no  pains  to  ren- 
der satisfaction.    We  travel  as  one  family,  and  have 
all  our  bills  in  common,  which  Mr.   Smith  inva- 
riably  disputes   and  higgles   over  until    they   are 
reduced  from   ten   to   twenty-live  per   cent.      He 
saves  us  much  expense  by  his  shrewdness.     You 
observe  that  our  leader  has  brought  to  the  aid  of 
his  dignity  a  uniform  well  becoming  a  bold  captain. 
At  Malta  he  bought  a  few  yards  of  gold  lace  and  a 
military  cap.     The  lace  he  has  had  sewed  upon  his 
pants,  upon  his  shoulders,  and  a  strip  around  his 
cap.     Shining  gilt  buttons  also  adorn  his  coat.     He 
is  quite  an  officer  in  appearance,  and  acts  his  part 
to   admiration.     He   says   that  a  friend  of  his   in 
Boston  told  him  that  if  he  ever  visited  Egypt  or 
Spain,  he  must  don  the  military  dress,  to  inspire 
awe  in  the  natives.     He   has  followed  the  advice, 
not  only  in  dress,  but  in  his  noble  bearing.     Smith 
we  all  consider  indispensable. 

But  the  bell  rings,  and  we  are  off  for  Grand 
Cairo — Cairo  the  magnificent— Cairo  the  Victorious. 
Here  we  go,  whizzing  through  the  delta,  up  the 


ual's  travels.  201 

valley  of  the  Wile ;  the  richest  country,  perhaps,  in 
the  world.  The  whole  country,  you  see,  is  inter- 
sected with  canals,  and  at  every  bound  we  see 
machines  for  raising  water,  to  irrigate  the  soil. 
We  pass  by  numerous  villages  embowered  in  groves 
of  palm  trees.  But  for  the  palms,  these  villages 
would  be  the  most  desolate,  forlorn-looking  places 
we  ever  saw  ;  for  they  are  composed  of  nothing  but 
mud  huts,  covered  with  cornstalks  or  straw.  The 
inhabitants  are  miserable-looking  creatures,  many 
of  them  half  naked.  There  is  a  ghastly  sameness 
about  all  these  villages — and  people.  Nearly  the 
whole  face  of  the  earth  is  green  with  crops  of  luxu- 
riant wheat  and  clover,  with  here  and  there  a 
familiar-looking  cotton-field.  And  now  cast  your 
e3'es  over  the  beautiful  plain  upon  the  left.  It  is 
exceeding  fiiir  to  look  upon  ;  "  the  best  of  the  land 
of  Egypt;"  and  the  numerous  flocks  and  herds 
you  see  before  you,  tell  you  that  you  are  viewing 
the  land  of  Goshen.  This  is  the  country  that 
Pharaoh  gave  to  the  patriarch  Jacob,  and  his  sons. 
It  is  still  good  for  cattle. 

Seven  hours'  run,  and  the  domes  and  minarets  of 
the  mosques  of  the  capital  of  Egypt  rise  before  us. 
That  is  Grand  Cairo,  the  pride  of  Egypt,  and  one  of 
the  largest  cities  of  the  East.  At  four  o'clock  we 
halt  at  the  depot,  and  here  we  again  find  those  hor- 
rible evidences  of  European  or  American  encroach- 
ment— omnibusses — and,  what  is  still  more  horrible, 
we  find  a  multitude  of  hotel  "drummers."  "We 
don't  like  this.     It  is  not  the  feast  we  were  invited 


202  hal's  travels. 

to.  We  came  to  the  East  to  find  eastern  manners 
and  customs,  but  instead  of  that  we  are  actually  met 
hy  men  wearing  coats  and  hats,  and,  what  is  worse, 
addressed  in  plain  English ;  and,  even  worse  than 
that,  importuned  to  go  to  Shepherd's  Hotel,  and  Wil- 
liams's Hotel !  Think  of  that,  will  you !  "  Shepherd" 
and  "Williams"  keeping  hotel  in  Grand  Cairo! 
Romance  is  knocked  into  the  middle  of  next  week  ! 

Our  party  is  now  permanently  reduced  to  twelve, 
just  enough  to  fill  an  omnibus.  Smith  drives  a  bar- 
gain with  the  conductor,  and  we  despairingly  get 
into  the  lumbering  vehicle,  with  a  determination  to 
visit  all  the  hotels,  and  stop  at  the  one  that  will  take 
us  on  the  best  terms.  We  go  first  to  Shepherd's, 
and  while  Captain  Smith  (I  must  give  him  his  title) 
is  chafiering  with  the  landlord  about  the  price,  a 
half-blind,  half-naked  Arab  comes  up  to  the  side  of 
the  omnibus  with  matches  to  sell.  I  take  a 
box,  and  give  the  fellow  a  rupee  to  change,  (half  a 
dollar.)  In  five  seconds  my  rupee,  in  company  with 
the  Arab  and  his  basket  of  matches,  is  out  of  sight. 
I  jump  out  and  follow  in  vain.  He  is  at  least  a 
quarter  of  a  mile  away.  The  villainous  idlers  and 
shirt-tail  donkey-boys  about  the  hotel  laugh  at  my 
discomfiture. 

We  leave  Shepherd's  and  drive  to  four  or  five 
other  hotels,  and  finally  make  a  satisfactory  bargain 
with  the  landlord  of  the  Hotel  d' Orient,  where  we 
unpack  and  settle  down  for  a  season.  Capt.  Smith 
did  himself  great  credit  in  beating  the  hotel-keeper 
down  in  his  price.    He  contends  that  as  we  tako 


hal's  travels.  203 

lodgings  by  wholesale,  we  ouglit  to  have  tliem  at 
wholesale  prices.     Very  right. 

So  here  we  are  in  Cairo,  surrounded  with  drago- 
men, all  wanting  employment.  We  are  besieged 
and  set  upon  by  swarms  of  them.  We  all  shake 
them  off,  and  send  them  to  Capt.  Smith.  All  these 
dragomen  have  something  less  than  a  peck  of  cer- 
tificates each,  which  they  expect  us  to  read,  and 
Smith  reads  them. 

And  now  another  morning  has  dawned.  Having 
had  a  night's  rest,  we  will  sally  forth  and  see  the 
city.  We  desire  to  walk,  but  the  crowd  of  donkeys 
waiting  at  the  door  is  evidence  that  we  are  expected 
to  ride.  We  muster  our  forces,  and,  with  the  cap- 
tain in  advance,  make  a  gallant  charge  towards  the 
open  street,  but  the  donkey-bo^^s  about  the  door  are 
too  many  for  us.  We  retreat  ingloriously.  Rally 
and  make  another  charge,  but  our  repulse  is  more 
signal  than  at  first.  The  donkeys  have  been  rein- 
forced. We  hold  a  council,  and  determine  to  break 
through  at  all  hazards.  The  captain  shouts,  flour- 
ishes his  shillalch,  and,  with  the  vigor  of  Peter  Mc- 
Graw  at  Donnybrook  Fair,  makes  a  bold  rush,  fol- 
lowed by  us  all  in  solid  column :  knocks  down  two 
Arabs,  and  nearl}'  punches  the  eye  out  of  a  third, 
but  all  to  no  purpose.  The  column  of  donkeys  and 
donkey-boys  is  impenetrable.  We  hold  another 
council,  and  capitulate.  Twelve  donkeys  arc  imme- 
diately hired,  and  a  few  minutes  after,  twelve  Am- 
ericans, eight  gentlemen  and  four  ladies,  are  gallop- 
ing at  full  speed  through  the  narrow  streets  of  Cairo, 


204  HAL'S    TRAVELS. 

followed  by  twelve  Arab  boys  whose  vociferous  yells 
keep  the  road  before  us  clear.  Tbeir  yells  are  in- 
cessant, and  interpreted  would  be  something  like, 
"0  old  man  !  0  virgin  !  get  out  of  the  way !  on  the 
right !  on  the  left !  look  to  your  bare  feet !  These 
Americans  come,  they  come,  they  come !  Stand 
not  in  the  way,  0  ye  children  of  the  true  faith  !" 
"We  make  for  the  citadel — a  powerful  fortress  on  a 
hill  overlooking  the  city.  It  was  into  this  citadel 
that  Mohammed  Ali  Pasha  inveigled  the  Mama- 
lukes  and  had  them  massacred.  Within  the  citadel 
is  the  Pasha's  Palace,  and  the  finest  mosque  in  the 
city.  "We  take  off  our  shoes  and  enter,  and  see  the 
faithful  x^rostrating  themselves  with  their  faces  to- 
wards Mecca.  We  now  walk  to  the  edge  of  the 
wall  of  the  fortress  and  look  out  upon  the  scene 
below.  Is  it  not  magnificent  ?  The  city  from  here 
looks  beautiful,  for  the  numerous  domes  and  grace- 
ful minarets  look  very  picturesque.  If  Cairo  could 
onl}^  be  seen  from  here,  we  should  call  it  a  city  of 
great  beauty ;  but  when  we  enter  the  narrow,  filthy 
streets,  and  are  continually  jostled  by  loaded  don- 
keys, and  camels,  and  miserable  sore-eyed  people, 
we  desire  to  be  somewhere  else.  Few  of  the  streets 
are  wide  enough  to  admit  carriages.  But  from  the 
walls  of  the  citadel  we  see  none  of  this  hideousness. 
All  is  fair  and  comely.  Now  look  away  off  to  the 
west.  Is  not  that  a  picture  ?  There  is  nothing  to 
bound  the  vision.  You  see  the  great  river  Mle 
come  winding  down  between  its  green  banks  for 
many,  many  miles,  dotted  with  hundreds  of  sail- 


hal's   travels.  205 

boats.  ]S"ow  look  across  twelve  miles  in  the  south- 
west. There  are  tlie  Pyramids  of  Ghezeh,  just  as 
yon  have  seen  them  in  pictures  all  your  life.  They 
look  perfectly  natural — -just  exactly  as  you  expected 
to  see  them.  Don't  old  Cheops  loom  up  proudly ! 
Does  not  seem  to  be  more  than  two  or  three  miles 
oiF,  but  it  is  twelve.  Wonderful  pile !  We  will  go 
and  take  a  nearer  view  of  it  some  day,  so  be  pa- 
tient. 

But  come,  let  us  return  to  our  hotel.  We  must 
hold  a  general  council  this  evening.  One  portion  of 
our  part}^  have  got  their  heads  set  towards  Mount 
Sinai,  and  the  rest  of  us  desire  a  trip  up  the  Nile. 
It  is  time  a  decision  Avas  come  to.  Three  "highly 
respectable  gentlemen"  of  most  villainous  aspect 
have  kindly  tendered  their  services  to  conduct  us 
across  the  desert  to  Sinai.  They  are  true  descend- 
ants of  Ishmael. 

But  look!  Here  comes  a  wedding -procession. 
Two  old  fellows  lead  it,  beating  something  like  rude 
drums ;  immediately  behind  them  is  the  bride,  closely 
veiled,  supported  by  tAvo  other  women,  also  veiled. 
The  friends  of  the  bride  bring  up  the  rear  with  songs 
and  laughter.  She  is  on  her  way  to  the  house  of 
her  intended,  to  be  delivered  over,  after  which  she 
will  no  more  be  seen  upon  the  streets,  for  a  husband 
never  sutfers  his  wife  to  go  abroad  in  Egypt.  The 
Koran  prohibits  Mohammedan  wives  exhibiting 
themselves  in  public,  and  the  jealousy  of  the  hus- 
bands endorses  the  prohibition. 

Here  we  are,  at  the  hotel.     We  take  dinner,  and 


206  HAL'S     TRAVELS. 

discuss  the  question  as  to  our  future  movements. 
The  three  "immortal  'New  England  clergymen" 
plead  strongly  for  the  Sinai  trip,  but  the  rest  of 
us  have  made  up  our  minds  to  see  Thebes  and  the 
crocodiles.  The  preachers  waver  a  little,  and  we 
think  our  arguments  have  well-nigh  prevailed. 
"We  end  the  discussion  and  retire  to  our  rooms. 

Another  day  has  broken  upon  us,  fair  and  lovely. 
This  is  our  third  day  in  Cairo.  We  take  a  drago- 
man and  start  out  on  a  sight-seeing  tour.  Remember- 
ing our  defeat  yesterday  morning,  we  quietly  yield 
ourselves  into  the  hands  of  the  donkey-boys,  and 
are  soon  off  in  a  canter,  raising  clouds  of  dust  and 
a  terrible  clatter.  First  we  will  go  to  the  Island  of 
Rhoda,  a  beautiful  isle  in  the  Mle,  covered  with 
rich  vegetation  and  some  fine  gardens.  A  palace 
of  one  of  the  former  rulers  of  Egypt  stands  on  this 
island.  Here  is  a  picturesque  grotto  built  of  stones, 
shells  and  coral,  said  to  mark  the  spot  where  the 
infant  Moses  was  found  in  the  bulrushes.  iTow  we 
will  go  to  the  upper  end  of  the  island  and  see  the 
Nilometer,  or  Nile -measurer.  It  is  a  chamber 
perhaps  forty  feet  square,  with  a  pillar  in  the  centre, 
marked  for  ascertaining  the  rise  of  the  Nile. 
"When  the  river  is  rising,  the  dail}^  rise  is  pro- 
claimed in  the  streets  of  the  city  each  morning,  by 
criers,  in  the  different  wards  of  the  town.  There  is 
nothing  remarkable  about  this  pillar,  except  its 
antiquity.  It  was  established  many  years  before 
Christ. 

Now,  having  seen  the  grotto,  the  palace,  and  the 


hal's   travels.  20T 

Nilonieter,  wc  will  rccross  this  branch  of  the  river, 
and  go  to  the  mosque  of  the  Howling  Dervishes,  for 
this  is  Friday,  and  their  service  begins  at  one 
o'clock.  "We  go  through  a  shady  court  into  a  large 
square  room,  the  floor  of  which  is  covered  with 
matting,  and  around  a  circle  in  the  centre  arc 
spread  some  rugs  and  sheep-skins.  The  brethren 
have  commenced  coming  in,  and  in  a  few  minutes 
the  circle  is  complete.  They  take  their  seats  on 
sheep-skins,  and  begin  a  humming  noise,  which,  if 
we  desired  to  be  very  courteous,  we  might  call 
singing.  Now  contemplate  them,  as  they  sit  there, 
swaying  their  bodies  to  and  fro.  There  are  thirty 
of  them,  perhaps ;  most  uncouth-looking  creatures ; 
sturdy,  undersized,  broad-shouldered,  bare-legged, 
splay-footed,  horny -fisted,  dark -browed,  savage- 
looking,  hairy -throated  creatures,  whose  coun- 
tenances denote  the  most  desperate  sanctimonious- 
ness. Now  one  old  fellow  of  a  liver-and-tan  color, 
and  a  bull-terrier  expression,  takes  his  stand  in  the 
centre  of  the  circle.  A  wave  of  the  hand  brings 
the  worshippers  to  their  feet.  The  turbans  of  all 
who  have  long  hair  are  removed.  Then,  at  the 
word  of  command,  they  commence  swaying  their 
bodies  back  and  forth,  each  making  a  noise,  as  he 
bends  his  body,  not  unlike  the  puffing  of  a  high- 
pressure  steamboat.  This  exercise  is  continued  for 
one  hour,  without  intermission,  the  movement 
gradually  growing  more  rapid,  and  the  coughing 
noise  growing  louder,  until  it  resembles  a  howl. 
The  movement  becomes  so  rapid  that  the  long  hair 


208  hal's  travels. 

can  be  heard  to  crack  as  the  jerk  is  made.  Some 
of  them  bend  over  so  far  as  to  almost  touch  the 
floor.  Then-  movements  are  directed  by  the  old 
priest  who  stands  in  the  centre.  The  ceremony  is 
accompanied  with  a  strange  kind  of  music — drums, 
tambourines,  flageolets,  etc.,  which  is  any  thing  but 
harmonious.  This  jerking  movement  is  carried  on 
until  some  of  the  worshippers  become  so  mesmer- 
ized that  they  go  into  all  sorts  of  strange  antics, 
and  some  fall  down  in  fits  of  epilepsy,  foaming  at 
the  mouth.  When  this  state  is  attained,  the  ex- 
hibition closes,  and  visitors  are  expected  to  retire. 
It  is  wonderful  that  it  does  not  kill  them.  'No  one 
will  desire  to  see  such  an  exhibition  a  second  time. 
The  Dervish  service  being  over,  we  will  go  to  the 
mosque  of  Amru,  the  oldest  and  most  extensive  in 
the  city.  It  is  almost  in  ruins ;  indeed,  much  of  it 
has  already  fallen.  There  is  a  superstition  among 
the  Moslems,  that  when  this  mosque  falls,  Moham- 
medanism will  cease ;  that  a  new  prophet  will  arise, 
whose  prophecies  shall  supersede  the  Koran.  That 
time  will  not  be  long,  judging  from  the  looks  of 
these  ancient  walls.  In  this  mosque  are  two  upright 
stone  pillars,  between  which  all  the  faithful  must 
pass.  All  who  pass  between  them  can  gain  admit- 
tance into  the  kingdom  of  heaven.  Those  whose 
corporeal  rotundity  renders  it  impossible  for  them 
to  get  through,  can  never  make  the  trip  to  the 
Moslem  heaven ;  for  it  is  said  that  they  are  too 
fond  of  the  good  things  of  this  world.  By  a  very 
tight  squeeze,  you  see  that  I  can  get  through,  not- 


iial's  travels.  209 

withstanding  my  increased  bulk,  caused,  no  doubt, 
by  my  sojourn  among  the  savory  leeks  and  onions 
of  Egypt. 

Now  we  will  go  up  into  Old  Cairo,  and  visit  the 
old  Coptic  Church,  beneath  which  is  a  grotto,  in 
which  it  is  said  the  Virgin  Mary  and  the  infant 
Saviour  dwelt  during  their  stay  in  Egypt,  when 
they  fled  from  Ilerod.  I  know  not  the  authority 
for  the  tradition.  The  house  and  the  grotto  bear 
evidence  of  great  age,  and  were  perhaps  here  at  the 
time  of  our  Saviour.  The  Coptic  Christians  fully 
credit  the  tradition. 

Having  done  a  pretty  good  day's  work  in  the 
way  of  sight-seeing,  we  will  return  to  our  hotel 
and — sleep. 

Now  has  arrived  our  fourth  daj'  in  Cairo.  We 
have  talked  over  again  the  respective  routes  of  the 
Nile  and  Mount  Sinai.  The  Nile  predominates, 
and  Captain  Smith  and  your  friend  Hal  have  been 
deputized  to  go  down  to  the  river,  to  select  boats 
for  the  trip.  We  require  two  boats :  six  only  can 
go  in  one  boat.  I  am  decidedly  happy  this  morn- 
ing ;  for  I  have  had  my  heart  set  upon  a  trip  up  the 
Nile.  We  jump  upon  donkeys  and  gallop  down  to 
the  river — a  mile  and  a  half  from  our  hotel.  Here 
are  quite  a  number  of  boats,  waiting  to  be  hired. 
How  nice  and  cosy  they  are !  A  sight  of  them 
makes  me  doubly  anxious  to  go  up  the  river.  Here 
is  a  snug  little  cabin,  and  six  cosy  little  bunks. 
Won't  we  have  a  nice  time  !  We  have  selected  an 
experienced  and  intelligent  dragoman,  who  brought 


210  hal's  travels. 

us  letters  of  recommendation  from  Bayard  Taylor, 
and  many  other  Americans.  He  goes  with  us  to 
select  the  boats,  and  has  promised  to  faithfully 
superintend  the  cleansing  of  those  we  select;  for, 
as  the  Nile  boats  are  nearly  all  alike,  cleanliness  is 
the  main  point  to  look  to  in  making  a  selection. 
This  is  very  important ;  for  there  are  still  lingering 
remnants  of  those  terrible  plagues  once  sent  upon 
Egypt  by  the  Almighty.  Fleas  and  bedbugs  are 
not  the  worst  of  the  vermin  met  with  here.  Well, 
we  select  two,  and  go  back  to  the  hotel  to  report, 
when,  0  horrible  !  we  find  the  party  again  burst  up, 
or  nearly  so.  Mr.  Brown  has  again  flown  from  his 
agreement,  and  again  declares  for  Mount  Sinai,  and 
is  followed  by  Mr.  Jones  and  two  others.  And 
thus  we  stand — eight  in  favor  of  the  Nile,  and  four 
against  it.  A  split  seems  inevitable,  but  we  perse- 
vere, knowing  that  men  who  have  already  changed 
twice  are  likely  to  change  again.  We  all  take 
donkeys  and  ride  out  to  the  Shubra  gardens  and 
country  palace  of  the  Pasha,  the  most  beautiful 
place  we  have  yet  seen  in  Egypt.  This  closes  the 
day.  We  will  now  return  to  our  hotel  and  discuss 
the  route  question  again. 

Fifth  day  in  Cairo — Sunday.  We  rest  all  the 
forenoon,  and  in  the  afternoon  go  to  the  American 
Mission-rooms,  and  hear  a  discourse  by  Mr.  C,  one 
of  our  party,  and  afterwards  a  short  talk  by  Mr.  W., 
another  one  of  our  party. 

Sixth  day.  Our  donkeys  are  brought  out  early ; 
for  to-day  we  visit  Heliopolis,  the  ancient  city  of 


iial's   travels.  211 

On.  We  mount,  and,  as  usual,  leave  the  city  in  a 
lively  gallop.  We  ride  some  eight  or  nine  miles, 
part  of  the  Avay  through  desert,  and  part  through 
rich  farms.  And  here  we  are,  at  Ilcliopolis.  We 
see  nothing  like  a  city  now.  There  is  nothing  left 
to  mark  the  place  where  the  ancient  city  stood,  ex- 
cept one  immense  granite  ohelisk,  covered  with 
hieroglyphics,  which  tell  the  story  of  its  ancient 
greatness.  We  see  many  mounds,  where  once 
stood  massive  huildiugs,  hut  they  have  neither 
shape  nor  comeliness.  Traces  of  the  old  walls  are 
plainly  disecrnihle,  with  their  gates,  hut  that  is  all. 
A  little  outside  the  wall  is  a  well  of  water,  held  in 
great  esteem  hy  the  Coptic  Christians,  because  it  is 
said  that  Joseph  and  Mary,  w^ith  the  infant  Jesus, 
drank  and  rested  there,  upon  their  first  coming  into 
Egypt.  A  sycamore  tree  stands  over  it,  which  is 
said  to  have  been  standing  at  that  time.  It  is  the 
oldest-looking  tree  I  ever  saw — nine  feet  in  diame- 
ter one  way,  and  three  another,  being  fiat. 

It  was  in  this  city  of  On  that  Joseph,  the  son  of 
Jacob,  was  married  to  the  daughter  of  the  high- 
priest.     That  was  a  long  time  ago. 

Having  seen  all  that  is  to  be  seen  here,  we  will 
return  to  the  city,  and,  if  we  get  there  in  time,  will 
visit  some  of  the  Bazaars. 

You  have  never  been  in  an  Eastern  Bazaar 
before  ?  No  wonder  you  stare  Avith  your  big  eyes. 
Here  you  see,  in  the  space  of  one  hundred  yards, 
fifty  stores  at  least ;  perhaps  more.     They  are  stuck 


212  hal's  travels. 

in  the  sides  of  the  houses,  like  cupboards.  The 
floor  is  raised  perhaps  two  feet.  The  merchant  sits 
cross-legged  in  the  middle,  smoking  his  pipe ;  and 
if  you  ask  to  see  an  article,  he  hands  it  down  to 
you  without  changing  his  position  ;  for  he  can  reach 
any  shelf  in  his  little  box  without  moving.  He 
seems  perfectly  indifferent  about  selling,  seeming 
to  care  more  about  his  "  chibouk"  than  for  worldly 
gains.  He  sits  "like  Patience  on  a  monument," 
from  morning  till  night.  This  one  you  see  pufiing 
smoke,  and  twirling  his  fierce  moustache,  is 
but  a  specimen  of  a  thousand.  You  are  surprised 
at  the  great  number  of  these  turban ed  traders. 
jSTothing  but  a  thin  partition  divides  these  stores 
one  from  another,  and  the  streets  on  which  they 
are  located  are  so  narrow  that  a  merchant  can  retain 
his  seat  and  hand  his  pipe  across  to  his  opposite 
neighbor.  When  a  loaded  camel  passes  through, 
which  we  often  see,  foot  passengers  have  to  crouch 
close  to  the  wall,  or  they  are  in  danger.  But  it  is 
getting  late,  and  we  will  return  to  the  hotel,  and 
again  discuss  the  route  question. 

Seventh  day.  Glorious  news  !  The  Mount  Sinai 
party  has  again  come  round,  and  announced  their 
unalterable  determination  to  go  up  the  Mle.  Now 
for  preparations  in  earnest.  Achmet  Sciada  (this  is 
the  name  of  our  dragoman)  now  has  orders  to  fit 
out  the  expedition  with  the  utmost  dispatch.  We 
all  take  donkeys  and  gallop  down  to  see  the  boats. 
The  ladies  express  themselves  highly  pleased  with 
the  appearance  of  the  boats,  and  the  gentlemen  are 


hal's  travels.  213 

all  satisfied.  Orders  are  given  to  have  the  fleas, 
bed-bugs,  and  other  vermin  utterly  and  uncompro- 
misingly destroyed,  which  Achmet  says  shall  be 
done.  Rats  are  also  to  be  excommunicated,  and 
cockroaches  banished.  Capt.  Smith  and  your  friend 
are  to  superintend  these  warlike  measures.  The 
boats  are  nice  and  trim,  and  look  like  good  sailers. 
They  are  perhaps  seventy  feet  long,  and  are  rigged 
with  immense  leg-of-mutton  sails.  Each  is  to  be 
manned  with  fourteen  men,  including  the  cooks 
and  waiters.  We  have  christened  them  "  Hiawatha" 
and  "Minnehaha."  We  are  indebted  to  Mrs.  Smith, 
who  has  a  poetical  turn  of  mind,  for  these  names. 
We  will  return  now  to  the  hotel  and  finish  up  the 
sight-seeing,  while  the  dragoman  gets  things  in 
readiness  for  a  start.  Lunch  is  ready  when  we 
arrive  at  the  hotel.  We  eat,  and  now,  ho !  for  the 
"Petrified  Forest." 

Again  in  the  saddle,  and  with  our  twelve  donkey- 
boys  yelling  at  our  heels,  we  clatter  through  the 
streets,  and  emerge  from  the  eastern  gate  of  the  city 
and  enter  at  once  into  the  desert.  Two  hours'  ride 
through  desolation,  where  no  green  thing  meets  the 
eye,  and  we  reach  what  is  called  the  "Petrified 
Forest."  It  is  an  immense  field  of  logs,  and  stumps, 
and  chips,  of  all  shapes  and  sizes,  looking  precisely 
like  wood,  but  all  solid  stone.  Some  have  the  ap- 
pearance of  oak,  and  some  walnut.  There  are  im- 
mense quantities  of  it.  How  or  when  it  got  here, 
are  questions  for  wise  men  to  answer  if  they  can. 


214  HAL'S    TRAVELS. 

We  gather  many  specimens,  and  return  to  Cairo 
"with  a  pocket-full  of  rocks." 

Eighth  clay.  This  is  a  day  of  sadness.  We  are 
told  this  morning  that  an  American  who  has  been 
lying  here  sick  for  some  days,  is  rapidly  sinking. 
He  returned  to  Cairo  a  week  or  two  ago  from  Syria, 
ill  of  a  fever,  which  has  continued  to  grow  worse 
daily.  He  is  a  Mr.  Osborne,  of  Philadelphia.  Our 
preparations  for  departure  are  made  without  noise 
or  hilarity.  .... 

Mr.  Osborne  has  now  breathed  his  last,  and  lies 
in  an  upper  room,  cold  in  death.  He  died  alone, 
as  it  were.  A  few  short  months  ago  he  left  his  wife 
in  Geneva,  expecting  to  return  about  this  time. 
His  remains  will  be  interred  this  evening,  and  a 
letter  will  bear  the  sad  intelligence  to  the  bereaved 
widow.  He  died  with  a  Christian's  hope.  For- 
tunate man  !  He  has  completed  his  journey  but  a 
little  sooner  than  the  rest  of  us.     It's  all  right. 

We  are  busy  now,  fixing  for  our  departure.  There 
are  many  little  luxuries  as  well  as  necessaries  that 
must  be  bought  here,  for  we  are  told  that  nothing 
can  be  got  above  here.  We  will  go  up  to  the  Euro- 
pean bazaar  and  get  us  a  couple  of  American  flags, 
for  it  will  not  do  to  go  up  the  Nile  without  showing 
our  colors.  Mr.  Smith  is  anxious  for  us  to  get  a 
young  cannon  to  fire  salutes  as  we  meet  other  boats. 
We  are  now  ready  to  start  to-morrow.  Our  drago- 
man informs  us  that  all  the  stores  are  on  board,  the 
crew  ready,  and  if  we  have  a  fair  wind,  we  shall  to- 


iial's  travels.  215 

morrow  be  wending  our  way  towards  Thebes,  where 
we  shall  wander  among  the  greatest  ruins  in  the 
world.  AYe  all  calculate  on  getting  us  a  mummy 
apiece,  and  a  young  crocodile  or  two.  We  shall 
perhaps  go  to  the  first  cataract,  and  take  a  look  at  the 
Ethiopians  in  all  their  native  beauty  and  7iakcd  sim- 
plicit3^  We  leave  the  hotel  this  evening,  and  shall 
sleep  on  the  boats  to-night.  We  must  not  forget  to 
lay  in  a  lot  of  pipes  and  a  good  supply  of  tobacco, 
as  well  as  a  large  supply  of  powder  and  shot,  for  we 
are  told  that  game  is  abundant  up  the  Nile.  Fishing- 
tackle  must  also  be  remembered.  So,  farewell  for 
the  present. 

Hal. 


216  HAL'S    TRAVELS. 


LETTER  XXIII. 

EGYPT  —  CAIRO    TO    THEBES. 

All  aboard !  Haul  in  the  plank !  Ring  the  bell ! 
Hoist  the  sail !  Spread  the  stars  and  stripes  to  the 
breeze,  and  let  us  be  off! 

But  hold  !  There  is  no  breeze.  The  flag  clings 
to  the  mast,  and  the  bosom  of  the  majestic  ISTile  is 
as  placid  as  a  lake  in  summer.  We  must  "wait  a 
little  longer." 

We  moved  into  our  new  quarters  last  evening, 
and  have  already  settled  down  into  a  quietness  al- 
most home-like.  We  found  our  dear  little  "  Minne- 
haha" newly  painted  and  varnished,  swept  and  gar- 
nished, neat  as  a  pin — in  short,  all  that  fancy  painted 
her.  We  slept  in  her  neat  little  state-rooms  with 
the  sweet  assurance  that  a  war  of  extermination  had 
been  successfully  waged  against  the  peace-destroy- 
ing vermin  so  peculiar  to  Egypt,  and  particularly 
to  Mle  boats.  In  other  words,  we  found  the  "Min- 
nehaha" innocent  of  bed-bugs.  Our  friends  on 
board  the  "  Hiawatha"  were  not  so  fortunate.  They 
got  up  this  morning  with  bitter  lamentations.  We 
pity,  but  cannot  help  them.  Achmet  (our  drago- 
man) comforts  them  with  the  assurance  that  hostili- 


hal's  travels.  217 

ties  shall  be  immediately  recommenced  and  vigor- 
ously prosecuted,  until  not  a  living  bug  or  flea  is 
left  to  tell  the  tale. 

"While  we  are  waiting  for  the  breeze,  permit  me 
to  introduce  you  to  the  "Minnehaha,"  which  is  to 
be  our  home  for  six  or  seven  weeks  to  come.  See 
how  trim  she  is,  and  how  gracefully  she  sits  upon 
the  water.  ISTow  come  aboard.  See  these  cosy  little 
rooms.  Here  are  three  of  them,  eight  by  ten  feet 
square ;  two  beds  in  each,  which  answer  the  pur- 
pose of  sofas  by  day.  See  how  nicely  the  floors  are 
carpeted,  how  richly  the  little  windows  are  cur- 
tained, and  how  beautifully  the  walls  are  striped  off 
with  red,  green,  yellow,  and  white  paint.  Did  you 
ever  see  any  thing  more  brilliant  ?  The  artist  un- 
derstood the  effect  of  mingling  colors — didn't  he? 
A  barber's  shop  was  never  more  striped.  Here  we 
have  a  table,  six  chairs,  two  tin  candlesticks,  a 
swinging  tin  lantern,  and  an  abundance  of  looking- 
glass — our  furniture  all  told.  Now  look  on  deck ; 
here  we  have  cages  of  turkeys,  gccse,  pigeons,  and 
chickens,  besides  a  quarter  of  beef  and  several  quar- 
ters of  mutton.  In  the  hold  we  have  bread,  vege- 
tables, flour,  and  all  the  etceteras  necessary  for  a 
two  months'  voyage — besides  a  goat  to  give  us  milk 
by  the  way,  and  a  sheep  for  future  killing.  This 
cat  we  take  along  to  catch  the  fleas — a  tidy  little 
yellow  cat  she  is.  Every  thing,  you  see,  is  home-like. 
Here  is  an  awning  on  the  upper  deck  to  protect  us 
from  the  sun.  This  will  be  our  general  lounging 
place. 


218  hal's   travels. 

N'ow  take  a  glance  at  our  crew.  There  are  tliir- 
teeii  in  all,  including  tlie  two  cabin-boys.  The  cap- 
tain is  a  noble-looking  young  Egj^ptian,  tall  and 
brawny,  with  a  flashing  black  eye.  He  wears  a  large 
turban,  which  adds  not  a  little  to  his  noble  appear- 
ance. His  dress  is  one  peculiar  to  the  country, 
being  a  long  blue  shirt  which  reaches  several  inches 
below  the  knees.  He  disdains  to  trammel  his  rich 
brown  legs  with  trowsers.  The  sailors,  like  their 
captain,  are  all  in  their  shirt-tails,  but  none  of  them, 
save  the  helmsman,  rejoice  in  the  possession  of  the 
turban.  Our  dragoman  dresses  in  the  richest  Turk- 
ish costume,  with  a  turban  of  costly  Damascus  silk. 
He  is  a  fine-looking  fellow,  very  quiet  and  gentle- 
manly in  his  manners.     We  like  him  much. 

The  scene  around  us  as  we  lie  here  at  the  wharf 
is  quite  oriental.  You  see  scores  of  Eg^^ptian  wo- 
men coming  down  to  the  river  with  the  great  earthen 
water-pots  on  their  heads.  They  wade  into  the 
water,  wash  their  feet  and  legs,  fill  their  pots,  and 
depart.  Like  the  men,  they  all  wear  the  long  blue 
cotton  shirts,  with  a  yard  or  two  of  the  same  mate- 
rial thrown  gracefully  over  their  heads,  with  which 
they  make  prodigious  efiiorts  to  conceal  their  faces 
from  the  gaze  of  man.  Their  cotton  shirts  are  so 
scant  and  thin  that  they  serve  nearly  as  much  to  dis- 
play' as  to  conceal  their  rather  graceful  forms.  You 
also  see  caravans  of  little  donkeys  coming  down  and 
departing  laden  with  goat-skins  full  of  water.  Oc- 
casionally a  camel  is  loaded,  and  waddles  ofi"  with 
these  water-skins. 


hal's   travels.  219 

But  see !  our  flag  begins  to  float.  The  wind  is 
rising.  The  sailors  flj'  to  their  posts,  push  out  into 
the  stream,  spread  the  sails,  we  fire  salutes,  and  are 
off" — Hiawatha  gallantly  leading  the  way,  and  ^lin- 
nehaha  gayly  tripping  after.  And  now  we  scud  away 
before  the  breeze.  Farewell  to  Grand  Cairo.  "Wc 
are  afloat  upon  the  turbid  bosom  of  the  mighty 
Nile. 

And  is  it  really  so  ?  Am  I  on  the  great  river  of 
Egypt,  whose  waters  were  once  blood?  the  sands 
upon  whose  beach  were  once  lice  ?  Am  I  in  the 
land  of  Egypt,  and  near  the  very  spot  where  the 
prophet  of  God  was  taken  from  the  bulrushes  ? 
And  was  it  here  that  the  locusts  came  up  from  the 
great  sea  and  destroyed  every  green  thing ;  where 
the  cold,  slimy  frogs  came  up  and  covered  the  lands, 
penetrating  into  the  very  bedchambers,  and  infesting 
the  kneading-troughs ;  where  a  great  darkness  came 
upon  the  people,  and  the  angel  of  death  was  in  every 
house  ?  It  is  even  so !  Yonder  is  Memphis,  or 
Noph,  where  Pharaob  lived.  ISIoses  was  brought 
up  there  as  the  son  of  a  princess.  Joseph  lived 
there,  and  Potiphar  lived  in  the  neighborhood.  It 
was  there  that  the  mighty  miracles  of  God  were 
wrought  by  .the  hand  of  his  servant  Moses,  to  con- 
vince the  heathen  monarch  of  his  great  power. 
There  still  stand  the  pyramids  which  Abraham  and 
Moses,  and  Jacob  and  Joseph,  and  all  the  patriarchs 
have  looked  upon  as  w^e  now  see  them.  And  away 
over  3'Ondcr  is  the  cit}'  of  On,  which,  like  its  neigh- 
bor, Memphis,  has  fallen  before  the  awful  curse  of 


220  HAL'S    TRAVELS. 

God,  as  denounced  by  the  prophets  Jeremiah  and 
Ezekiel.  It  stood  in  the  fruitful  land  of  Goshen, 
the  best  of  the  land  of  Egypt,  which  was  given  to 
the  patriarch  Jacob  and  his  sons.  l!Tothing  now  re- 
mains of  that  once  great  city  but  its  fallen  walls, 
and  one  immense  obelisk !  And  this,  too,  is  the 
land  to  which  our  Saviour,  when  an  infant,  was 
brought  by  Joseph  and  his  espoused  Mary  to  escape 
the  death  which  the  wicked  Herod  would  have  ad- 
m.inistered.  Just  over  there  is  the  subterranean 
grotto  in  which  he  was  nourished.  The  building 
which  stands  above  it  is  visible  from  where  we  stand, 
and  Christians  worship  even  now  in  the  very  place. 
But  the  breeze  is  blowing  briskly,  and  our  little 
boats  stem  the  current  bravely.  We  pass  the  Island 
of  Rhoda,  and  are  now  opposite  Ghezeh,  and  the 
great  Pyramids,  and  Memphis.  We  will  not  stop 
to  see  them  now,  but  wait  until  our  return  from 
Upper  Egypt.  Mr.  Smith  is  in  ecstasies,  and  Mrs. 
Smith  is  on  deck,  singing, 

"  0  how  we  fly  'neath  the  loud-creaking  sail !" 

The  weather  is  perfectly  delicious — neither  too 
hot  nor  too  cold.  We  are  still  in  sight  of  the  domes 
and  minarets  of  Cairo.  l!^umerous  palm-groves  and 
mud  villages  are  in  sight.  The  scenery  is  so  novel 
that  I  shall  not  be  able  to  confine  myself  much  longer 
to  write.  I  want  to  be  on  deck.  So  be  patient  if 
you  can,  and  I  will  finish  this  letter  at  some  future 
time,  should  the  spirit  move  me  to  take  up  the  pen. 

It  has  been  many,  many  days  since  the  foregoing 


iial's    travels.  221 

was  written.     We  are  now  eighteen  days  out  from 
Cairo.     Expect  to  see  the  great  ruins  of  Thebes  to- 
morrow, should  we  have  any  wind  to  help  us  on — 
an  article  we  have  been  wanting  for  several  days. 
For  me  to  note  all  the  incidents  that  have  occurred 
along  the  way  up  the  river  would  be  both  tiresome 
and  unprofitable,  so  I  shall  not  do  it.     I  will  say, 
however,  that  thus  far  the  voyage  has  been  a  de- 
lightful one ;  and  I  shall  always  look  back  upon  it 
as  one  of  the  most  pleasant  seasons  I  ever  enjoyed. 
Incidents  rich  and  racy,  conversations  fluent  and 
spic}',  and  songs  solemn  and  comic,  have  made  time 
fly  on  sM'ift  wings.     "We  have  had  head  winds  and 
favoring  winds,  calms  and  storms,  hot  suns  and  chill- 
ing breezes — every  variety  of  weather  except  rain, 
for  it  seldom  rains  in  Egypt.     We  have  strolled  on 
the  shore,  penetrated  mud  villages,  talked  to  the 
natives,  and  rolled  in  the  sand  on  the  margin  of  the 
river,  and  kicked  up  our  heels  in  the  most  free-and- 
easy  manner.     I  never  knew  what  it  was  before  to 
be  perfectl}'  free  from  care ;  for,  be  assured,  there  is 
no  care  on  this  boat  for  anybody  but  the  dragoman. 
He  is  all  in  all — the  factotum.     lie  is  our  servant, 
our  master,  our  guide,  interpreter — ever}-  thing.    He 
supplies  all  our  wants,  and  we  have  nothing  in  the 
world  to  do  Init  to  cat,  drink,  and  be  merry.     Wo 
smoke  our  pipes,  drink  our  coffee,  read  our  books — 
sometimes — write  when  we  feel  like  it,  sing,  talk,  and 
tell  yarns  with  the  utmost  freedom,  dress  or  not 
dress  just  as  suits  our  tastes,  and,  in  fact,  do  as  wo 
list,  without  regard  to  the  prescribed  rules  of  civil- 


222  HAL'S     TRAVELS. 

ized  society.  I  must  confess  to  a  sort  of  feeling  of 
pity  for  you  poor  fellows  at  home  who  are  compelled 
to  dress  up  and  wear  blacked  boots  and  two-story 
hats  every  day,  starched  and  ironed  shirts,  and  care- 
fully-tied cravats.  In  short,  you  are  bound  down 
and  hedged  about  with  the  most  oppressive  laws  of 
utter  respectability,  while  we  in  Egypt  kick  up  our 
heels  with  impunity,  and  snap  our  fingers  at  society 
and  its  laws.  Glorious  is  life  upon  the  Nile  !  But 
the  best  of  our  sport  consists  in  shooting  game.  We 
roam  the  fields  when  we  please,  and  shed  streams  of 
blood.  Game  is  so  plenty — geese,  ducks,  pigeons, 
pelicans,  and  crocodiles,  the  latter  of  which  nobody 
kills,  although  everybody  tries  to  kill — when  they  see 
them.  We  spend  much  time  on  the  shore,  for  when 
the  sailors  are  dragging  the  boat,  which  is  more  than 
half  the  time,  we  traverse  the  rich  fields,  and  lounge 
in  the  villages,  which  are  as  plenty  in  Egypt  as 
blackberries  in  North  Carolina.  Mr.  Smith  and 
your  correspondent  are  almost  inseparable  com- 
panions. We  talk  together,  walk  together,  and 
shoot  together.  Smith  is  not  what  would  be  called 
in  Kentucky  a  good  marksman.  He  will  shoot  at 
any  thing,  from  a  sparrow  to  a  crocodile,  but  rarely 
gets  any  thing.  While  some  of  our  party  think 
little  of  bringing  down  a  dozen  pigeons  at  one  shot, 
Smith  is  well  pleased  if  he  can  bring  down  one 
pigeon  in  a  dozen  shots.  Pigeons  are  here  by  the 
million.  The  chief  feature  in  all  the  villages  is  the 
pigeon-houses.  They  tower  much  higher  than  the 
dwellings,  and  are  invariably  built  with  more  taste 


iial's  travels.  223 

(if  au  Egj'ptian  can  be  said  to  have  any  taste)  than 
the  huts  inhabited  by  the  people — or  two-legged 
creatures  who  answer  the  place  of  people.  Smith 
loves  to  go  into  these  villages,  and  to  talk  or  try  to 
talk  to  these  naked  and  half-naked  devils,  who  are 
to  be  found  lounging  and  smoking  by  the  hundred 
in  every  town.  He  invariabl}^  takes  advantage  of 
them  and  asks  for  "  backsheesh"  before  their  inordi- 
nate laziness  will  permit  them  to  get  the  word  out. 
He  thus  forestalls  them,  and  saves  his  coppers.  A 
shrewd  man  is  Smith.  Perhaps  you  think  I  slight 
the  rest  of  my  fellow-passengers  by  saying  nothing 
about  them,  and  speaking  altogether  of  Smith.  The 
fact  is,  Smith  is  the  only  original  character  we  have 
in  the  party,  and  the  only  man  in  whom  I  feel  a  deep 
interest.  True,  Absalom  Jones  is  a  "  man  of  parts," 
but  then  he  is  not  like  Smith.  I  remember  one  day 
our  boat  arrived  at  Ossiout,  once  the  capital  of  Upper 
Egypt,  and  one  of  the  largest  cities  in  the  country. 
The  town  lies  back  perhaps  a  mile  and  a  half  from 
the  river.  As  we  were  to  lie  there  a  few  hours  to 
give  our  crew  a  chance  to  have  a  fresh  supply  of 
bread  baked.  Smith  and  myself  mounted  donkeys 
and  set  oli'  in  a  gallop  for  the  bazaars.  On  the  way 
we  came  up  with  a  crowd  of  Egyptians  in  a  muss. 
A  fight  seemed  inevitable.  By  the  time  we  got  into 
the  crowd  it  had  actually  commenced.  Five  stal- 
wart, half-naked,  yellow-skinned  dogs  were  pitching 
into  one  old  man,  and  giving  him  particular  thun- 
der. Without  waiting  a  moment,  Smith  plunged 
into  the  thickest  of  the  fight,  and  fell  to  right  and 


224  HAL'S     TRAVELS. 

left  with  liis  stick  in  behalf  of  the  weaker  party.  I 
was  somewhat  alarmed,  for  I  thought  the  villains 
(either  of  whom  could  have  demolished  their  assail- 
ant with  one  blow)  seemed  disposed  to  show  fight. 
Smith  heeded  them  not,  however,  but  laid  his  stick 
unmercifully  on  their  heads  and  bare  shoulders  until 
the  whole  five  broke  and  precipitately  fled,  while 
the  rescued  old  man  ran  as  fast  in  an  opposite  direc- 
tion. A  Frank  (a  term  for  Europeans  and  Ameri- 
cans) can  knock  an  Arab  down  with  impunity,  (un- 
less it  be  a  wild  Bedouin  of  the  desert,)  and  fear  no 
evil,  especially  if  he  have  a  gold  band  on  his  cap,  as 
Smith  had. 

I  would  give  you  a  paragraph  or  two  descriptive 
of  the  scenery  along  the  Nile,  if  there  were  not 
already  scores  of  books  devoted  to  this  especial 
thing.  Travellers  generally  think  themselves  bound 
to  describe  scenery — but  I  don't.  One  feature,  how- 
ever, strikes  me  forcibly.  It  is  the  total  absence  of 
timber,  or,  at  least,  any  thing  like  wild  timber.  The 
palm  is  almost  the  only  kind  of  tree  to  be  met  with, 
and  it  is  only  cultivated  for  its  fruit — the  date.  A 
little  accident  called  my  attention  more  particularly 
to  this.  It  was  the  want  of  a  ramrod.  ISTot  a  stick, 
or  a  limb,  or  a  sprig,  or  a  sprout  have  we  been  able 
to  find  in  Egypt  long  enough  or  straight  enough  to 
make  a  ramrod  even  for  a  short-barrelled  fowliDg- 
piece.  We  had  not  been  three  days  out  from  Cairo, 
when  my  friend  Smith  shot  away  his  ramrod.  He 
then  used  mine  until  two  days  afterward  he  dropped 
it  overboard,  and  we  were  both  left  unable  to  load 


iial's    travels.  225 

our  guns,  and  would  liavc  continued  so  but  for  ii 
small  walking-cane  which  ni}^  good  friend  Tummy 
Robinson  gave  me  in  London.  Tliat  little  walking- 
cane  has  enabled  us  to  destroy  much  game. 

Many  little  incidents  have  occurred  along  the 
way  that  would  be  quite  amusing  if  I  could  do  them 
justice  in  the  telling.  One  deliciously  pleasant 
evening  I  remember,  not  many  days  ago,  when  our 
boat  was  sailing  gently  before  a  quiet  breeze,  I  was 
lounging  on  the  "sofa,"  puffing  my  chibouk,  and 
thinking  of  dear  ones  far  away ;  Smith  was  sitting 
by,  cleaning  his  gun,  and  boasting  of  the  execution 
he  meant  to  do  on  the  morrow ;  Jones  was  reading 
Prime's  travels,  and  Brown  was  writing  up  his 
journal.  The  ladies,  Mrs.  Smith  and  Miss  Kissiah 
Jones,  were  in  their  cabin  in  the  arms  of  Morpheus, 
for  all  we  knew.  Perhaps  it  will  not  be  out  of 
place  for  me  to  say  here  that  Miss  Kissiah  is  as  nice 
a  young  lady  as  you  would  wish  to  see — neat  as  a 
pin,  and  lovely  enough  to  be  just  the  sort  of  com- 
pany one  would  love  to  have  on  the  Nile.  As  for 
Mrs.  Smith,  she  is  inienseli/ nice,  and  as  particular  in 
all  things  as  ladies  ever  get  to  be.  The  sight  of  a 
cockroach  would  frighten  her,  while  that  horrible 
insect  known  in  America  as  a  bedbug  would,  I 
think,  almost  drive  her  into  spasms.  But  as  I  was 
saying  above,  on  that  delicious  evening  when  we 
were  all  lounging  and  smoking  and  reading  and 
writing,  suddenly  we  heard  in  the  ladies'  cabin 
something  like  a  faint  scream,  then  a  low  murmur- 


226  hal's  teavels. 

ing  of  voices,  and  then  a  faint  and  prolonged  "0!" 
like  some  one  giving  up  in  despair.  Smith  recog- 
nized the  voice,  and  rushed  in.  Mrs.  S.  had  gone 
off  into  something  like  a  swoon,  while  Miss  Kissiah 
stood  by,  pale  and  trembling,  holding  something 
between  her  thumb  and  finger  wrapped  up  in  a 
piece  of  paper.  A  tumbler  of  water  brought  the 
madam  to  her  senses,  and  an  explanation  followed. 
Mrs.  S.  had  been  prying  into  the  secret  recesses 
and  folds  of  her  garments,  and  had  scared  up  an 
animal,  the  precise  species  of  which  she  did  not 
know,  but  which  she  had  awful  suspicions  was  the 
very  thing  she  above  all  others  desired  it  should  not 
be.  Miss  Kissiah  held  the  frightful  beast  tightly  in 
the  paper  between  her  fingers.  It  was  brought  out 
for  us  all  to  examine.  We  had  no  difliculty  in  de- 
ciding that  it  was  indeed  the  very  thing  itself  that 

Mrs.  S.  had  feared  it  was — to  wit,  a  shall  I 

write  it  ? — a but  it  is  suflicient  to  say  that  it 

was  a  lineal  descendant  of  the  third  plague  of 
Egypt.  A  general  examination  followed  this  dis- 
covery, which  turned  up  many  more  of  the  same 
sort.  Mrs.  Smith  did  not  make  her  appearance  at 
the  head  of  the  tea-table  that  evening.  She  has  lost 
her  buoyancy  of  spirits,  and  her  color  is  fast  fading. 
She  sighs  for  a  return  to  civilization.  Smith  deeply 
sympathizes  with  her,  and,  I  regret  to  say,  is  not 
the  man  he  was.  Miss  Kissiah  takes  the  unfortunate 
discovery  more  philosophically,  and  vows  heroically 
to  murder  every  marauding she  catches.    This 


HAL'S    TRAVELS.  227 

species  of  insect  abounds  plentifully  in  Egypt,  and 
he  who  enjoys  the  pleasures  of  Nile  travelling  must 
expect  to  suiFer  its  ills. 

If  I  could  do  it,  I  would  like  to  give  you  some 
idea  of  a  Mohammedan  religious  festival — but  I 
can't.  We  stopped  one  day  at  the  city  of  Girgeh, 
where  a  fifteen  days'  festival  was  going  on,  and  it 
was  a  little  ahead  of  any  thing  I  ever  saw.  As 
soon  as  the  boat  landed  we  all  hastened  up  into  the 
city,  if  an  immense  collection  of  mud-pens  covered 
with  mats  and  corn-stalks  can  be  called  a  city. 
The  streets  (if  little,  narrow,  filthy,  crooked  lanes 
can  be  called  streets)  were  crowded  with  an  im- 
mense herd  of  creatures  very  much  resembling  men 
and  women,  cutting  up  all  sorts  of  monkey-shines, 
some  singing,  some  beating  instruments  resembling 
tambourines,  others  tapping  rude  drums,  and  others 
snapping  their  fingers  and  keeping  time  by  wag- 
ging their  heads  in  the  most  grotesque  manner. 
In  an  open  space  near  the  river-bank  stood  a  tall 
pole  with  a  rag  on  it,  intended  for  a  banner.  In  a 
circle  around  this  pole  sat  more  than  a  hundred 
men,  mostly  old  and  grayheaded.  Within  the 
circle  sat  many  more,  all  with  their  shoes  oft'. 
Some  were  swaying  their  bodies,  and  chanting 
"Allah-wa,  Allah-w^a,"  while  others  were  talking 
vociferously  and  making  furious  gestures.  Near 
this  circle  was  another  standing  circle  of  Dervishes, 
going  through  just  such  ridiculous  contortions  and 
bowlings  as  we  had  witnessed  in  Cairo.  In  the 
court  of  a  mosque  hard  by  was  another  just  such  a 


228  hal's  travels. 

crowd.  We  went  into  tlie  mosque,  followed  by 
about  a  hundred  of  the  naked  and  filthy  natives, 
for  it  is  impossible  for  a  "how^adji"  (a  gentleman)  to 
walk  in  one  of  these  towns  without  having  a  bevy 
of  these  animals  at  his  heels,  and  if  he  does  not 
carry  a  stick  or  a  cowhide  or  some  other  defensive 
weapon  to  beat  them  off,  they  become  oppressively 
familiar.  As  we  entered  the  court  of  the  mosque 
the  janizary  who  guarded  the  entrance  fell  upon 
the  crowd  at  our  heels  with  a  huge  whip,  and  beat 
some  of  them  unmercifully.  Such  a  yelling  and 
scampering  I  never  saw  before.  The  janizary  then 
turned  tons  and  demanded  "backsheesh"  for  the 
service  he  had  rendered  us.  Since  then  we  have 
done  our  own  fighting  and  saved  the  backsheesh. 
This  was  a  fair  as  well  as  a  religious  festival.  Tents 
and  temporary  huts  of  corn-stalks  occupied  every 
available  space,  where  itinerant  merchants  were 
vending  the  goods,  wares,  and  vegetables  peculiar 
to  the  country.  On  our  way  back  to  the  boats  we 
were  set  upon  by  a  horde  of  dancing-girls,  dressed 
in  the  most  gaudy  and  fantastic  style,  the  fancy 
articles  being  principally  worn  upon  the  head,  neck 
and  arms,  while  the  remaining  portion  of  the  per- 
son can  hardly  be  said  to  have  been  dressed  at  all. 
I  saw  two  whose  only  articles  of  dress  were  beads 
and  head  ornaments.  These  nymphs  occupied  a 
separate  group  of  corn-stalk  huts.  "We  almost  had 
to  fight  our  w^ay  through  them.  Some  of  them  had 
rather  good-looking  faces ;  but  I  have  never  yet 
seen  a  really  handsome  Egyptian  woman.      They 


iial's   travels.  229 

paint  a  black  streak  around  their  ej-es,  which  they 
imagine  adds  greatly  to  their  beauty.  We  finally 
fought  our  way  through  the  "backsheesli"-clamoring 
"fair  ones,"  got  to  our  boats,  and  went  on  our  way 
rejoicing. 

My  friend  Smith  is  lame  to-day.  Has  been  hob- 
bling about  two  or  three  days  in  the  most  restless 
and  impatient  manner,  cursing  because  he  has  not 
been  able  to  go  ashore  shooting.  His  lameness  was 
brought  about  in  rather  an  amusing  manner.  It 
was  thus  :  A  couple  of  our  sailors  had  a  falling  out 
a  few  nights  ago,  and  finally  came  to  blows.  It 
was  dark  on  deck,  and  from  the  noise  and  confusion 
which  reigned,  you  would  have  thought  that  there 
were  at  least  fifty  in  the  fight.  Not  only  the  two 
belligerents  were  yelling  and  cursing  at  the  top  of 
their  voices,  but  the  whole  thirteen  were  making 
their  lungs  do  service  in  the  most  high-pressure 
style.  The  ladies  became  frightened,  not  knowing 
but  a  band  of  roving  Bedouins  had  attacked  the  crew. 
Smith  rushed  out,  and,  as  is  his  manner,  pitched 
into  the  midst  of  the  fight — for  Smith  is  an  impetu- 
ous man — and  the  first  thing  he  knew  he  didn't 
know  much  of  any  thing.  On  the  front  part  of  the 
deck  near  the  kitchen  there  is  a  hatchway,  leading 
of  course  down  into  the  hold  of  the  boat.  We  call 
it  the  "goat-hole,"  because  in  there  we  keep  our 
mutton  and  our  milk-goat.  In  the  melee  Smith 
disappeared  into  tliis  "goat-hole,"  and  being  some- 
what stunned,  he  lay  there  until  tlie  fight  was  over, 
when  his  head  shot  up — his  iron-gray  liair  bristling 


230  HAL'S    TRAVELS. 

out  like  spikes — ^presenting  the  most  ghostlike  ap- 
pearance that  1  have  seen  on  the  Nile.  Pale, 
wounded,  bloody,  and  immeasurably  astounded, 
with  his  bald  head  peering  up  from  the  dark  abyss 
below,  he  presented  a  picture,  as  revealed  by  the 
one  dim  candle  which  had  been  brought  to  the 
scene,  that  would  have  made  the  fortune  of  any 
comic  painter  in  the  world  could  he  have  copied  it 
correctly.  We  lifted  the  old  gentleman  out,  bore 
him  into  the  cabin,  staunched  his  bleeding  nose,  ad- 
ministered a  dose  of  brandy,  all  of  which  restored 
him  to  himself,  when  he  discovered  that  a  piece  of 
skin  about  the  size  of  a  dollar  was  missing  from  the 
cap  of  his  right  knee.  Smith  has  not  hunted  ducks, 
geese,  or  pigeons  since.  Thinks  he  will  be  able  to 
be  out  to-morrow.  I  hope  so,  for  we  shall  probably 
arrive  at  Thebes  to-morrow. 

"We  have  met  many  boats  returning  from  the  up- 
country  during  our  voyage,  two  with  American 
colors,  and  several  with  French  and  English.  We 
make  it  a  rule  to  exchange  salutes  with  all  we  meet. 
A  day  or  two  ago  we  met  a  boat  gliding  down  with 
an  immense  English  flag  and  an  extensive  streamer 
floating  in  the  breeze.  "We  fired  our  guns  as  usual, 
and  waited  and  listened,  but  no  response  came. 
We  were  evidently  "  cut."  Smith  grew  farious — 
walked  the  deck,  gnashed  his  teeth,  and  foamed  at 
the  mouth.  Wanted  to  tack  about  and  give  chase, 
and  vowed  by  all  that  was  sacred  that  he  would  give 
them  a  few  guns  loaded  with  something  more  than 
powder.     Didn't  care,  he   said,  as  far  as  he  was 


iial's  travels.  231 

individually  concerned,  but  the  American  flag  had 
been  insulted,  and  he  was  for  wiping  out  the  stain 
then  and  there.  I  have  no  doubt,  if  he  had  met 
a  Britisher  about  that  time,  something  would  have 
happened.  Smith  is  n't  afraid.  'We  finally  got  him 
cooled  down  by  persuading  him  that  the  English- 
men had  been  up  the  country  for  some  time,  and 
had  in  all  probability  run  out  of  powder. 

Yesterday  we  passed  Gheneh,  the  capital  of 
Upper  Egypt,  celebrated  only  as  being  the  place 
where  the  governor  lives,  and  for  the  manufacture 
of  pottery.  Before  our  boat  approached  within 
three  miles  of  the  town,  we  were  met  by  a  troop  of 
donkey-boys,  soliciting  the  privilege  of  giving  us  a 
ride  up  to  the  city.  As  our  boat  was  going  very 
slowly — the  sailors  were  towing,  there  being  no 
wind — we  accepted  the  invitation,  and  once  more 
found  ourselves  in  the  saddle  scouring  away  across 
the  sand}^  plain  towards  Gheneh,  with  half-a-dozen 
black  Nubians  yelling  at  our  heels,  beating  the 
donkeys  whenever  they  could  get  within  striking 
distance  of  them.  "We  dashed  into  the  cit}^  at  furi- 
ous speed,  kicking  up  a  tremendous  dust  as  we 
went,  jostling  and  discomposing  many  a  pious 
Mussulman,  and  knocking  the  long-stemmed  pipes 
from  the  mouths  of  not  a  few  of  the  leather-headed 
Arabs  as  they  thronged  the  narrow  lanes.  We 
rushed  through  the  bazaars,  and  then  into  the  out- 
skirts, and  in  less  than  two  hours  I  think  we  had 
explored  the  town  thoroughly,  threading  all  the 
streets  and  lanes  in  a  lope,  to  the  great  astonish- 


232  hal's  travels. 

ment  of,  and  not  without  serious  danger  to  the 
frightened  natives.  We  found  that  about  every 
other  house  was  either  a  manufactory  of,  or  a  place 
for  the  sale  of  pottery.  "We  were  assailed  again  by 
the  fancy  girls,  who  actually  blocked  up  the  passage 
and  demanded  "backsheesh"  in  tones  of  appalling 
shrillness,  A  handsome  one — that  is,  a  fat  one,  for 
"fat"  and  "beautiful"  are  synonymous  terms  in 
this  country — seized  the  donkey  of  my  good  friend 
Smith  by  the  bridle,  and  held  on  so  tenaciously  that 
Smith  surrendered,  and  actually  gave  her  a  piastre. 
If  it  had  been  a  man  or  a  boy,  he  would  have  felt 
the  weight  of  Smith's  stick,  but  Smith  is  a  gallant 
man.  After  "  doing"  the  town,  and  laying  in  a 
fresh  stock  of  tobacco,  we  departed  to  our  boats,  to 
the  no  small  delight  of  the  quiet  citizens.  It  was 
quite  a  treat  to  get  on  the  back  of  a  donkey  once 
more,  and  we  enjoyed  it  hugely.  Riding  a  good 
donkey  is  the  very  poetry  of  motion. 

A  rather  laughable  incident  occurred  on  board 
our  boat  to-day.  While  we  were  all  taking  our 
after-dinner  smoke  and  siesta,  I  was  aroused  by 
hearing  a  very  loud  quarrel  begin  between  Saide 
Demshiri,  our  captain,  and  old  Hassan,  the  helms- 
man. I  went  out  just  in  time  to  see  Hassan  ap- 
proach Saide  and  give  him  a  box  upon  the  cheek. 
JSTow  Captain  Saide  is  a  young  man,  twenty-two  or 
twenty-three  years  old  perhaps,  while  Hassan  is  a 
venerable  old  patriarch,  M'ho  was  a  helmsman  upon 
the  I^ile  before  the  captain  Avas  born.  Saide  being 
young  and  athletic,  I  expected  to  see  him  demolish 


hal's  travels.  233 

old  Hassan  iustauter,  which  he  was  just  preparing 
to  do  when  the  sailors  interfered.  When  Saide 
found  that  he  could  not  get  hold  of  the  old  fellow, 
he  was,  I  think,  the  most  enraged  and  furious  in- 
dividual I  ever  saw.  Captain  Smith's  rage  when 
the  English  boat  refused  to  respond  to  our  salute, 
was  as  child's-play  compared  to  Captain  Saide's  de- 
monstrations. His  eyes  glared  like  those  of  a  tom- 
cat in  a  dark  cellar.  He  foamed  at  the  mouth  like 
a  hyena.  He  tore  his  shirt  (the  only  garment  he 
had  on)  from  the  bosom  clear  out  to  the  tail ; 
snatched  off  his  turban  and  beat  the  ground  with  it, 
leaving  his  closely  shaven  head  (all  Egyptians  shave 
their  heads)  bared  to  the  burning  sun.  Took  up. 
handfuls  of  sand  and  threw  it  in  the  air ;  covered 
his  head  with  dirt ;  snorted,  roared,  threw  himself 
on  the  ground,  and  kicked  like  a  spanked  child. 
Under  the  command  of  Hassan,  the  sailors  shoved 
off  the  boat,  and  we  left  Captain  Saide  alone  in  his 
glory,  spread  out  like  a  huge  bull-frog,  with  his  face 
in  the  sand.  Our  dragoman  was  on  the  Hiawatha, 
a  mile  or  two  ahead,  at  the  time  of  this  occurrence. 
His  presence  Avould  have  prevented  it.  He  Avill 
rejoin  us  to-night.  Captain  Saide  overtook  us  two 
hours  after  we  left  him,  but  he  is  still  sullen.  I 
think  his  chances  for  a  well  pair  of  feet  to-morrow 
are  slim.  Achmet  is  not  afraid  to  resort  to  the  bas- 
tinado. 

This  is  our  twentieth  day  on  the  Nile.  We  are 
now  nearins:  Thebes  and  Luxor.  Have  had  no 
wind   for   several   days   to   do   any  good,  but  we 


234  hal's   travels. 

will  get  to  Thebes  early  to-morrow,  wind   or  no 
wind. 

We  have  spent  no  time  sight-seeing  during  our 
upward  trip,  but  shall  devote  some  five  or  six  days 
visiting  antiquities  on  our  return.  It  will  require 
five  or  six  days  to  explore  the  great  ruins  here. 
Have  not  determined  yet  whether  we  will  go  farther 
up  the  river  or  not.  Guess  not,  as  we  are  anxious 
to  get  into  Palestine  by  the  middle  of  March. 

Nile-travelling  agrees  with  me  well.  The  flesh- 
pots  of  Egypt  have  had  a  wonderful  efieet.  I  am 
as  fat  as  a  bear,  and  the  pelting  African  sun  has 
burnt  my  face  as  brown  as  an  Arab's.     Farewell. 

Hal. 


II  A  L  '  S    TRAVELS.  235 


LETTER  XXIV. 

EGYPT — THEBES. 

My  last  letter  was  closed,  I  think,  on  the  night 
of  the  14th  inst,  while  the  "Hiawatha"  and  "Min- 
nehaha" were  lying  tied  up  to  the  bank  of  the  river 
some  five  or  six  miles  below  here.  We  shoved  oft' 
bright  and  early  on  the  following  morning,  and 
moved  towards  Thebes,  our  hearts  beating  high 
with  the  hope  of  soon  looking  upon  the  remains  of 
what  was  once,  perhaps,  the  greatest  city  the  world 
ever  saw — and  the  oldest,  for  it  was  doubtless  one 
of  the  first  cities  built  after  the  flood.  We  were  all 
out  on  deck  that  morning  much  earlier  than  usual, 
stretching  our  necks  to  catch  a  sight  of  the  great 
portico  of  Luxor.  Mrs.  Smith  was  up  before  the 
sun,  and  for  the  first  time  in  many  months — perhaps 
years — saw  that  glorious  luminary  make  his  per- 
sonal appearance  above  the  eastern  horizon.  Miss 
Kissiah  was  also  on  the  alert.  These  two  ladies  were 
not  on  deck,  but  at  their  little  cabin-windows,  gazing 
in  a  Theban  direction  for  a  glimpse  of  the  famed 
towers  of  Karnak.  While  there  they  saw  our  favorite 
and  only  cat — the  yellow  cat  which  had  been  the 
faithful  companion  of  our  voyage,  and  general  pet 


236  hal's  travels. 

of  the  party — they  saw  this  cat  thrown  with  violence 
far  out  into  the  stream.  This  horrible  catastrophe 
brought  forth  a  scream  from  Mrs.  Smith,  and  Miss 
Kissiah  followed  her  example.  But  screaming  did  no 
good :  Puss  had  sunk  to  rise  no  more.  This  occur- 
rence caused,  as  well  it  might,  no  small  stir  on 
board  the  "Minnehaha."  The  ladies  had  seen  the 
cat  thrown,  but  had  not  seen  the  wicked  hand  that 
did  the  deed.  Inquiry  was  immediately  set  on  foot, 
but  nobody  seemed  to  know  who  the  guilty  one  was. 
Suspicion  fell  upon  Mohammed,  the  black  Kubian 
cook.  Mohammed  denied  the  charge  with  great 
earnestness,  and  to  make  his  innocence  appear  more 
clear,  he  swore  that  there  had  not  been'  a  cat  nor 
the  shadow  of  a  cat  on  the  boat  for  two  days ;  that 
he  had  seen  the  cat  with  his  own  eyes  jump  over- 
board two  days  before  after  a  fish,  when  she  was 
immediately  seized  and  devoured  by  a  ravenous 
crocodile.  "We  all  knew  that  Mohammed  was  lying 
like  an  Arab,  but  his  cool  earnestness  was  refresh- 
ing. Witnesses  were  then  called,  when  Captain 
Saide  testified  that  he  had  seen  Mohammed  throw 
Puss  over.  But  this  was  nothing.  It  requires  two 
witnesses  to  establish  guilt  in  this  country.  Mo- 
hammed was  on  the  point  of  getting  oflE*  clear,  when 
Abdallah,  our  favorite  oarsman,  came  forward  and 
substantiated  the  testimony  of  the  captain.  Thus 
cornered,  Mohammed  owned  up,  but  justified  the 
act  by  asserting  that  the  cat  had  that  very  morning 
stolen  and  eaten  a  chicken  and  two  pigeons  which 
he  was  preparing  for  breakfast.     He  was  dismissed 


hal's  travels.  237 

for  the  time,  but  witli  tlie  assurance  of  the  drago- 
man that  a  settlement  would  be  entered  into  at 
Thebes. 

Mrs.  Smith  was  greatly  troubled  at  the  loss  of 
this  cat,  and  so  was  Miss  Kissiah ;  not  onl}^  on  ac- 
count of  their  fondness  for  Puss,  but  tliey  were 
superstitious.  They  fully  believed  that  some  evil 
would  befall  some  if  not  all  of  the  party.  Mrs.  S. 
had  never  known  it  to  fail,  that  when  a  cat  was 
murdered,  some  misfortune  followed  soon  after,  and 
Miss  Kissiah  had  always  "heard"  the  same  thing. 
Thc}^  have  been  in  trouble  ever  since. 

Early  in  the  day  the  great  ruins  loomed  up  before 
us.  Our  boats  were  moored  under  the  bank  of  the 
river  immediately  in  front  of  the  porch  of  the  grand 
Temple  of  Luxor.  AVith  impatience,  we  hurried 
on  shore  in  the  very  hottest  part  of  the  day,  (and  hot 
weather  means  something  in  Southern  Egypt,)  to 
view  the  mighty  columns  and  ponderous  towers. 
Our  wonder  and  admii'ation  were  great.  We  looked 
upon  the  pile  before  us,  and  thought  of  Rome  as  a 
little  thing.  We  looked  up  at  the  tall  obelisk  and 
the  three  colossal  statues  that  stand  at  the  entrance 
to  the  Temple,  and  wondered  what  kind  of  ma- 
chinery could  have  been  used  to'  place  them  there. 
We  walked  around  and  through  and  upon  this 
vast  structure,  nor  heeded  the  burning  sun,  so  great 
was  our  enthusiasm.  Perhaps  you  have  read,  but 
have  forgotten  when  and  where,  of  a  temple  so 
large  that  a  populous  village  now  stands  in  and 
upon  it.     It  is  the  Temple  of  Luxor.     We  climbed 


238  HAL'S    TRAVELS. 

up  an  immense  tower  which,  stands  at  one  of  the 
gateways,  by  what  had  once  been  a  flight  of  granite 
steps,  but  which  are  steps  no  longer,  the  foot  of  man 
and  time  having  Avorn  them  away.  Standing  up 
there  we  had  a  tine  view  of  the  surrounding  plains, 
the  frowning  walls  of  Karnak,  two  miles  distant,  and 
the  two  celebrated  colossal  statues,  Memnon  and 
his  nameless  companion,  standing  away  across  the 
river.  In  descending  from  this  tower,  your  corre- 
spondent slipped  and  fell,  and — got  up  again — but 
which  fall  came  well-nigh  putting  a  period  to  his 
sight-seeing  and  donkey-riding  in  Egypt.  The  ac- 
cident was  not  serious,  however,  a  pair  of  skinned 
elbows  and  a  few  bruises  being  the  extent.  A  half 
day's  Ij'ing  up,  and  all  was  right,  even  to  the  ability 
to  ride  a  donkey  at  full  sjDced.  A  few  minutes 
after  this  accident,  and  Mrs.  Smith  had  also  to  be 
borne  to  the  boat  in  a  fainting  condition,  something 
like  a  sun-stroke  having  overpowered  her.  A  little 
brandy  and  water  restored  us  both  in  due  time. 
She  was  in  favor  of  having  poor  Mohammed  imme- 
diatel}'  bastinadoed,  being  more  than  ever  convinced 
that  the  drowning  of  the  cat  had  caused  the  acci- 
dents, and  further  predicted  that  misfortumes  would 
continue  to  follow  the  party ;  and  then  she  quoted 
the  "Hiawathian"  lines  which  run  somewhat  thus: 

"Never  jumps  a  sheep  tlicat's  frightened 
Over  any  fence  whatever, 
Over  wall,  or  fence,  or  timber, 
But  a  second  follows  after. 
And  a  third  upon  the  second, 


iial's  travels.  239 

And  a  fourth,  and  fifth,  and  so  on, 
First,  a  sheep,  and  then  a  dozen. 
Till  they  all,  in  quick  succession, 
One  by  one  have  got  clear  over. 
So  misfortunes,  almost  always. 
Follow  after  one  another. 
Seem  to  watch  each  other,  always, 
When  they  see  the  tail  uplifted, 
In  the  air  the  tail  uplifted ; 
As  the  sorrow  leapeth  over, 
So  they  follow,  thicker,  faster. 
Till  the  air  of  earth  seems  darkened, 
"With  the  tails  of  sad  misfortunes." 

I  was  out  very  early  the  next  morning.  .  I  had 
read  and  heard  of  the  ancient  musical  propensi- 
ties of  the  great  statue  of  Memnon,  (and  who  has 
not  ?)  which  it  is  said  in  ancient  times  gave  forth 
musical  sounds  each  morning  at  the  rising  of  the 
sun.  I  took  a  position  where  I  could  see  the  sta- 
tue and  listen,  when,  as  the  sun  rose  and  kissed 
his  time-honored  and  cold,  wrinkled  brow,  judge 
of  my  surprise  when  I  heard  sounds,  not  truly  mu- 
sical, but  sad  and  mournful,  come  floating  across 
the  plains  and  the  river,  and  dying  away  in  the 
tumult  of  the  mud  village  that  lay  behind  me.  I 
had  thought  that  Memnon  had  long  since  ceased 
to  be  musical,  and  idle  curiosity  alone  had  prompted 
me  to  listen,  not  that  I  expected  to  hear  any  sound 
whatever.  My  delight  was  equal  to  my  astonish- 
ment when  I  heard  the  startling  notes.  I  hurried 
to  the  boat  with  wide-stretched  eyes  and  palpitat- 
ing heart,  to  inform  my  friends  and  give  them  a 
chance  to  witness  the  wonderful  performance.  Smith 


240  iial's  travels. 

was  tlie  first  man  out,  and  lieard  the  sounds  dis- 
tinctly ;  but  a  moment  after,  lie  pointed  out  a  wheel 
on  the  opposite  side  of  the  river,  slowly  revolving 
to  raise  water  for  irrigation,  being  turned  by  one 
solitary  ox.  It  was  making  a  horrible  creaking 
noise.  I  caved  at  once.  That  was  the  music  which 
had  so  excited  me.  Smith  had  the  laugh  on  me  all 
that  day.  Old  Memuon  sat  sublimely  silent  on  his 
cold,  stony  throne,  as  he  has  done  for  thousands  of 
years. 

After  breakfast  wc  all  gathered  together  from 
both  boats,  crossed  the  river,  and  set  out  for  the 
mountain  to  see  the  "  Tombs  of  the  Kings."  A 
crowd  of  donkeys  awaited  us,  (donkeys  wait  for  you 
everywhere  in  Egypt,)  and  I  saw  at  a  glance  that  we 
should  have  a  seufEe  for  it.  There  was  just  a  dozen 
of  us,  and  about  two  dozen  donkeys,  and  each  don- 
key-boy would  do  his  level  best  to  out-bully  his 
competitor,  and  get  himself  and  donkey  hired.  It 
is  a  fearful  thing  to  fall  into  the  hands  of  donkey- 
boys,  for  if  you  do  not  beat  them  off,  which  is  next 
to  an  impossibility,  they  will  almost  tear  you  limb 
from  limb.  When  our  boat  landed  I  sprang  upon 
the  shore,  and  fell  immediately  into  the  hands  of 
Mohammed  Ali  and  Hassan  Asoof.  They  were  stal- 
wart fellows,  each  large  enough  to  carry  his  diminu- 
tive donkey  on  his  own  shoulder.  Mohammed  Ali 
swore  that  he  had  the  best  donkey  in  Thebes,  and 
that  Hassan  and  his  donkey  were  both  humbugs ; 
that  his  own  donkey  could  go  like  a  horse.  Hassan 
retorted  the  best  he  could,  and  said  that  his  donkey 


hal's  travels.  241 

could  not  only  go  like  a  horse,  but  could  outrun  a 
jackal.  I  love  a  fleet  donkey,  and  was  therefore 
about  to  mount  Ilassan's,  when  Mohammed  Ali  re- 
turned to  the  charge,  and  swore  by  Allah  (he  was  a 
profane  dog)  that  his  donkey  could  be  properly  com- 
pared to  nothing  but  a  steamboat.  This  decided 
me,  and  I  mounted  the  donkey  of  Mohammed  Ali. 
During  the  quarrel  and  scuffle  they  had  each  held 
me  by  an  arm,  and  had  come  near  pulling  them  out 
of  their  sockets.  I  did  not  have  time  to  notice  the 
troubles  of  my  companions,  but  from  the  noise  kept 
up,  they  must  have  fared  worse  than  I  did.  We 
were  all  at  length  in  the  saddle,  and  fleeing  across  the 
broad  fields  toward  the  mountain  where  the  kings 
of  Egypt  have  slept  in  profound  repose  for  more 
than  thirty  centuries ;  old  Achmet,  the  guide,  lead- 
ing the  van,  mounted  on  a  donkey  which,  had  it 
been  weighed  in  the  balance  with  him,  would  have 
been  found  wanting.  My  own  donke}-,  which  Mo- 
hammed Ali  had  said  so  much  resembled  a  steam- 
boat, was  the  most  miserable  thing  I  ever  had  backed 
in  Eg3'pt,  but  little  larger  and  much  less  nimble 
than  our  milk-goat.  I  complained  of  the  cheat,  but 
Mohammed  Ali  swore  more  than  a  hundred  times 
that  it  was  the  best  donkey  in  Thebes,  and  more 
like  a  steamboat  than  any  thing  else.  But  all  the 
beating  that  Mohammed  could  bestow  could  not  get 
him  into  a  gallop.  He  promised  faithfully,  how- 
ever, that  on  the  next  day  he  would  furnish  me  a 
donkey  three  times  the  size,  and  one  that  could  run 
like  the  wind. 


242  hal's   travels. 

It  was  about  two  or  three  hours'  ride  to  the  Tombs. 
In  the  way,  we  passed  the  ruins  of  the  Temple  of 
Kooneh,  which,  like  that  of  Luxor,  was  built  of 
enormous  stones,  every  one  of  which,  too,  was 
covered  with  hieroglyphics,  and  images  of  men,  wo- 
men, etc.  It  was,  however,  comparatively  a  small 
temple.  "We  spent  an  hour  examining  it,  by  which 
time  the  heat  of  the  day  had  fully  come  upon  us. 
We  left  the  temple,  and  wound  our  way  up  a  dreary 
gorge  of  the  mountain,  while  the  rays  of  the  sun 
seemed  to  come  down  a  near  way  upon  our  de- 
voted heads.  It  was,  indeed,  a  pleasant  thing  to  sit 
down  in  the  shadow  of  a  great  rock  in  such  a  place 
and  on  such  a  day. 

The  first  tomb  we  entered  is  the  greatest  that  has 
ever  been  discovered  in  Egypt.  It  is  called  "  Bel- 
zoni's  Tomb,"  because  it  was  discovered  and  opened 
by  a  man  of  that  name.  It  is  entered  by  a  broad 
descending  passage,  which  leads  into  a  number  of 
large  and  elegantly  sculptured  and  painted  cham- 
bers, all  hewn  out  in  the  solid  stone  mountain,  and 
decorated  with  a  great  number  of  elegantly  wrought 
columns  which  support  the  roof.  The  paintings  and 
sculptures  represent  all  the  occupations  of  life,  as 
they  were  carried  on  three  thousand  years  ago. 
There  has  been  but  little  change  since.  The  dress 
of  the  laboring  people  was  the  same  then  as  now, 
being  nothing  but  a  simple  piece  of  cloth  around 
the  waist,  extending  about  half-way  down  to  the 
knees ;  the  rest  of  the  body  is  naked.  Boats  were 
rowed  and  towed  upon  the  Nile  then  just  as  they 


iial's   travels.  243 

are  yet.  Water  was  carried  iu  goat-skins,  and  the 
same  water-pots  were  used.  In  fact,  there  is  no 
change  or  improvement  in  any  thing  that  I  can  see 
for  all  that  time.  This  will  sound  strange  to  Ameri- 
can ears,  where  changes  are  occurring  and  improve- 
ments being  made  almost  daily. 

Besides  Belzoni's,  we  went  into  many  other  large 
tombs,  all  filled  with  paintings  and  hieroglyphics 
like  the  first.  To  attempt  a  description  of  any  of 
tliom  would  be  prosy.  These  are  the  tombs  in  which 
man}'  of  the  kings  of  Egypt  were  laid,  but  their 
mummied  bodies  have  been  removed,  and  now  grace 
or  disgrace  many  of  the  museums  of  Europe.  .  We 
eat  down  in  the  cool  shady  entrance  of  a  tomb,  took 
lunch,  smoked  our  pipes,  and  when  the  cool  of  the 
evening  approached,  wended  our  way  towards  the 
boats. 

In  returning,  another  accident  occurred,  which 
again  brought  up  the  story  of  the  murdered  cat,  and 
confirmed  the  superstition  of  Mrs.  Smith.  My  good 
friend  Smith  was  again  the  victim.  Brown  and  my- 
self seeing  what  appeared  to  be  a  freshly-opened 
tomb  up  the  side  of  the  mountain,  dismounted  and 
climbed  up  to  it,  leaving  our  donkeys  standing  in 
the  road.  Brown's  was  a  licentious  donke}^  and 
was  no  sooner  left  to  himself  than  he  pitched  into 
the  donkey  of  Mr.  Smith,  biting,  squealing,  pawing, 
and  snorting;  Smith's  donkey  resented  the  attack 
in  such  a  way  as  to  lay  his  rider  flat  on  his  back  on 
the  hard  stony  road.  Poor  Smith  has  been  grunting 
ever  since,     lie  refused  to  pay  the  donke^^-boy  the 


244  HAL'S    TRAVELS. 

usual  "backsheesh,"  (present,)  because  bis  donkey 
threw  him  off.  Smith  is  a  shrewd  man,  and  never 
will  pay  the  "backsheesh"  unless  his  donkey  suits 
him — and  I  have  never  known  him  to  have  a  don- 
key that  suited  him  yet. 

The  next  day  we  crossed  the  river  again,  and 
went  into  a  great  many  other  tombs.  "We  entered 
one  into  which  we  had  to  crawl  like  lizards,  so 
small  was  the  opening.  It  consisted  of  six  cham- 
bers, and  contained,  I  would  think,  not  less  than  a 
thousand  mummies.  I  walked  upon  them,  and 
heard  the  bones  of  some  crush  under  my  feet.  It 
was  strange  to  see  bodies  so  many  thousands  of 
years  old  wrapped  in  cloth  and  undecayed  as  they 
were  left  by  their  friends.  I  sat  down  upon  the 
breast  of  one  big  old  fellow,  and  unwound  the  cloth 
from  the  feet  of  a  smaller  one,  a  piece  of  which  I 
brought  away  to  carry  home  with  me.  Also  took 
one  of  their  hands  for  the  inspection  of  some  of 
mj^  home  friends.  Smith  would  not  go  into  this 
abode  of  the  dead,  but  stood  at  the  door  trembling, 
while  the  rest  of  us  left  him  alone.  Smith  is  not 
afraid  of  a  living  man,  but  has  a  mortal  dread  of 
entering  a  tomb  tenanted  by  dead  bodies. 

Coming  out  of  this  tomb,  we  descended  to  the 
Memnonium,  or  ruins  of  the  Temple  of  Memnon. 
This  was  grand  indeed.  Its  columns  were  nume- 
rous and  immense.  Every  stone  inside  and  outside 
of  this  immense  structure  is  covered  with  hiero- 
glyphics. I  do  not  know  how  to  give  you  an  idea 
of  the   magnitude  of    an   Egyptian   temple.     The 


ual's  travels.  245 

stones  arc  so  large  that  von  wonder  how  they  were 
ever  hoisted  to  their  places.  Every  thing  yon  sec 
is  on  such  a  scale  that  you  are  struck  with  amaze- 
ment. In  the  court  of  this  temple  lies  a  hroken 
colossal  statue  of  Eameses,  so  large  that  when  you 
see  it,  you  will  give  up  the  effort  to  comprehend  its 
greatness.  To  say  that  it  is  the  largest  statue  in 
the  world,  will  give  you  no  idea  of  it.  It  is  of 
granite.  It  is  thrown  down  and  broken ;  thought 
to  have  been  done  by  the  Persian  conquerors  of 
Egypt.  What  means  were  used  to  break  it,  is  a 
mystery,  for  gunpowder  was  unknown  in  those 
days.  And  if  the  breaking  of  it  be  a  mystery, 
how  much  greater  is  the  mystery  as  to  how  it  was 
brought  and  placed  in  the  court  of  the  temple  !  for 
it  was  certainly  brought  from  a  great  distance,  as 
there  is  no  red  granite  in  this  neighborhood.  I 
suppose  it  must  be  the  largest  block  of  hewn  stone 
in  the  world.  It  weighs,  according  to  Murray, 
more  than  eight  hundred  and  eighii/seven  tons  ! 

Leaving  the  Memnonium,  we  went  to  see  two 
great  statues  which  stand  in  the  plain  below — 
Memnon  and  his  companion.  Old  Memnon  was 
still  silent,  and  gazed  as  coldly  and  steadily  towards 
the  east  as  he  did  three  thousand  years  ago.  He 
heeds  not  the  rising  of  the  sun,  as  he  did  in  days 
of  yore;  at  least,  he  gives  forth  no  musical  sounds 
now,  as  then.  These  statues  stand,  or  rather  sit,  in 
a  cultivated  plain — wheat  growing  luxuriantly  all 
around  them,  with  scarcely  any  traces  of  the  great 
city  in  tlie  midst  of  which  they  once  sat.     Their 


24:6  HAL'S    TEAVELS. 

height  I  do  not  know.  They  are  perhaps  as  high 
as  any  house  in  Huntsville,  although  in  a  sitting 
posture  !  After  viewing  these  statues,  we  returned 
to  our  hoats,  being  saluted  by  the  way  by  all  the 
laborers  in  the  jB.elds,  with,  "Backsheesh,  howadji !" 
a  salutation  that  I  have  grown  sick  of  hearing. 

The  Egyptians  are  all  beggars.  The  first  word 
the  children  learn  is  "backsheesh,"  and  they  never 
see  a  "howadji"  that  they  do  not  scream  it  out. 
If  they  do  you  a  favor  of  any  kind,  they  of  course 
expect  "backsheesh;"  and  if  you  do  them  a  favor, 
they  expect  the  same  thing.  So  it  is  "backsheesh" 
first,  last,  and  all  the  time.  They  are  all  poor 
devils,  seldom  possessing  more  than  the  cotton 
shirt  or  breech-clout  which  hides  their  nakedness. 

Another  day  has  now  dawned.  Ho  for  Karnak, 
the  wonder  of  the  world !  Here  are  our  donkeys, 
waiting  for  us.  We  mount,  and  awa}^  I  had  for- 
gotten to  mention  that  Mrs.  Smith  is  no  longer 
able  to  ride  a  donkey.  She  has  now  to  be  carried  in  a 
chair,  with  a  pole  strapped  to  each  side,  on  the 
shoulders  of  four  Arabs.  She  enjoys  this  new 
mode  of  locomotion  hugely.  But  here  we  are,  at 
Karnak.  I  look  up  at  the  great  propylon,  and  feel 
a  dizzy  sensation.  Enter  the  court  of  the  temple, 
and  my  heart  leaps  with  astonishment.  Look  up 
at  the  enormous  columns,  and  the  great  stones  on 
top  of  them,  and  am  sick  with  wonder.  "What 
grandeur !  I  was  not  prepared  for  it,  although 
expecting  to  see  the  most  ponderous  ruins  in  the 
world.     It  is  too  much  for  me.     Here  are  in  one 


ual's  travels.  247 

Juill  one  hundred,  and  twenty-six  columns,  each 
thirty-six  feet  in  circumference,  with  capitals  almost 
double  the  size,  and  all  so  elaborately  carved !  And 
this  is  only  one  hall !  There  are  man}-,  many  others. 
This  temple  is  said  to  have  covered  seventy-five 
acres  of  ^'ound  !  There  were  four  gateways  lead- 
ing into  it,  each  of  which  was  approached  by  long 
avenues  of  Sphynxes.  One  of  these  avenues  was 
two  miles  long,  and  connected  the  two  temples  of 
Ivarnak  and  Luxor.  The  Sphynxes  are  nearly  all 
thrown  down  and  broken,  and  thousands  of  them 
buried  beneath  the  soil.  Shall  I  attempt  a  descrip- 
tion of  this  temple  ?  Ko.  It  would  fill  a  book. 
If  I  desired  to  be  exceedingly  prosy,  and  to  bore 
3'ou  unmercifully,  I  would  copy  a  few  pages  from 
Murray's  hand-book,  but  as  I  feel  kindly  towards 
you,  I  shall  not  do  it.  Every  stone  in  and  about  the 
temple  (and  there  are  enough  to  build  a  city)  is 
completely  covered  with  strange  figures  and  inscrip- 
tions. There  are  so  many  of  them  that  it  is  said 
they  have  never  even  been  counted  !  In  the  midst 
of  this  ruin  rise  two  granite  obelisks,  one  ninety- 
two  feet  high,  and  eight  feet  square  at  the  base,  be- 
sides the  portion  that  is  buried  in  the  ground ! 
They  are  covered  with  hieroglyphics,  cut  about 
three  inches  deep,  and  as  well  defined  as  if  they 
had  been  cut  but  yesterday.  Hundreds  of  broken 
statues,  of  every  size  and  description,  are  lying  in 
and  around  this  great  pile.  Some  of  the  paintings 
on  the  stones  of  the  temple  look  bright  and  fresh, 
as  if  recently  done.     Hero  arc  some  stones  I  have 


248  hal's   travels. 

measured :  tliey  are  tliirty-six  feet  long,  and  five  feet 
square.  They  formed  a  gateway,  which  is  now 
nearly  all  thrown  down. 

"When  we  look  at  these  ruins,  how  small  all  others 
seem  to  us  !  "We  think  of  the  many  broken  columns 
we  saw  lying  about  at  Rome  as  small  things  indeed. 
We  have  never  seen  a  broken  column  in  Egypt. 
They  were  not  made  to  be  broken.  "We  see  many 
lying  prostrate,  but  not  broken !  They  laugh  at 
the  tooth  of  time,  and  even  earthquakes  fail  to 
rend  them.  But  for  the  vandal  hand  of  man, 
Karnak  would  have  stood  whole  and  entire  as  long 
as  time.  But  alas  for  destructive  man  !  The  grace 
and  comeliness  of  Karnak  are  gone.  But  it  is  only 
the  fulfilment  of  prophecy.  The  Prophets  Jere- 
miah, Ezekiel,  and  l!^ahum,  all  prophesied  the 
destruction  of  Thebes,  (or  "Ko,"  as  it  was  some- 
times called.)  Like  the  other  great  cities  of  Egypt, 
it  has  fallen  before  the  wrath  of  God !  "We  spend 
the  day  among  these  ruins,  and  return  to  the  boats. 

The  next  day  was  Sunday.  Some  of  us  went 
again  to  Karnak,  and  some  didn't.  In  the  evening 
we  had  religious  service,  as  our  custom  is,  on  board 
the  "  Minnehaha." 

Monday  we  crossed  the  river  again  to  visit  the 
ruined  temple  and  palace  of — of — but  the  name 
would  be  too  hard  to  write,  even  if  I  could  remem- 
ber it.  I  will  only  say  that  it  was  an  immense  pile 
of  stones  and  columns,  and  had  once  been  a  build- 
ing superior  to  any  thing  I  had  seen  out  of  Egypt. 
It  dates  back  as  far  as  the  rest  of  the  ruins  I  had 


HAL'S    TRAVELS.  249 

seen.  It  was  partly  built  by  Ramescs  m.  The 
walls  are  mostly  covered  with  scenes  in  the  life  of 
that  kins;.  After  seeins;  this  we  returned  to  the 
neighborhood  of  the  tombs,  where  the  work  of  re- 
surrection is  still  going  on.  New  tombs  are  often 
found  and  opened.  The  whole  side  of  the  moun- 
tain which  overlooks  the  plain  of  Thebes  is  like  a 
honeycomb,  so  numerous  are  the  gaping  tombs  that 
have  been  opened  and  rifled  of  their  contents.  "VYe 
entered  one  which  is  now  used  by  Mustapha  Agah 
as  a  depository  for  what  he  finds  in  his  work  of  re- 
surrection. There  were  several  fine  mummy  cases, 
containing  bodies  which  he  has  recently  exhumed. 
One  of  them  was  the  body  of  a  princess.  There 
was  an  open  mummy -case  standing  against  the 
wall,  tenanted  by  a  withered  body,  with  its  hideous 
face  uncovered.  Mrs.  Smith  mounted  upon  the  top 
of  a  prostrate  sarcophagus,  and  delivered  the  follow- 
ing address  to  the  defunct  Egyptian,  which  she  seemed 
to  have  memorized  for  the  occasion.  The  address 
was  written  a  long  time  ago  by  one  of  the  Smith 
family — Horace  Smith,  perhaps : 

ADDRESS  TO  A  MUMMY. 

And  tliou  hast  walked  about  (how  strange  a  story !) 
In  Thebcs's  streets  three  thousand  years  ago, 

When  the  Memnonium  was  in  all  its  glory, 
And  time  had  not  begun  to  overthrow 

Those  temples,  palaces,  and  piles  stupendous. 

Of  which  the  very  ruins  are  tremendous. 

Speak !  for  thou  long  enough  hast  acted  Dummy. 
Thou  hast  a  tongue — come — let  us  hear  its  tunc ; 


250  hal's   travels. 

Tliou'rt  staudiug  ou  thy  legs,  above-ground,  Mummy  ! 

Revisiting  the  glimpses  of  the  moon, 
Not  like  thin  ghosts  or  disembodied  creatures, 
But  with  thy  bones  and  flesh,  and  limbs  and  features. 

Tell  us — for  doubtless  thou  canst  recollect — 
To  whom  should  we  assign  the  Sphynx's  fame  ? 

Was  Cheops  or  Cephrenes  architect 

Of  either  pyramid  that  bears  his  name  ? 

Is  Pompey's  Pillar  really  a  misnomer  ? 

Had  Thebes  a  hundred  gates,  as  sung  by  Homer  ? 

Perhaps  thou  wert  a  Mason,  and  forbidden 
By  oath  to  tell  the  secrets  of  thy  trade ; 

Then  say  what  secret  melody  was  hidden 

In  Memnon's  statue  which  at  sunrise  played  ? 

Perhaps  thou  wert  a  Priest ;  if  so,  my  struggles 

Are  vain,  for  priestcraft  never  owns  its  juggles. 

Perchance  that  very  hand,  now  pinioned  flat, 
Has  hob-a-nobbed  with  Pharaoh,  glass  to  glass ; 

Or  dropped  a  half-penny  in  Homer's  hat. 
Or  doffed  thine  own  to  let  Queen  Dido  pass ; 

Or  held,  by  Solomon's  own  invitation, 

A  torch  at  the  great  Temple's  dedication. 

I  need  not  ask  thee  if  that  hand,  when  armed. 
Has  any  Roman  soldier  mauled  and  knuckled, 

For  thou  wert  dead,  and  buried,  and  embalmed. 
Ere  Romulus  and  Remus  had  been  suckled : 

Antiquity  appears  to  have  begun 

Long  after  thy  primeval  race  was  run. 

Thou  couldst  develop,  if  that  withered  tongue 
Might  tell  us  what  those  sightless  orbs  have  seen, 

How  the  world  looked  when  it  was  fresh  and  young. 
And  the  great  Deluge  still  had  left  it  green ; 

Or  Avas  it  then  so  old  that  History's  pages 

Contained  no  record  of  its  early  ages  ? 


iial's  travels.  251 

still  silent!  incommunicative  elf! 

Art  sworn  to  secrecy  ?  then  keep  thy  vows ; 
But  pry  thee  tell  us  something  of  thyself— 

Reveal  the  secrets  of  thy  prison-house; 
Since  in  the  world  of  spirits  thou  hast  slumbered, 
AVhat  hast  thou  seen— what  strange  adventures  numbered? 

Since  first  thy  form  was  in  this  box  extended, 

We  have,  above-ground,  seen  some  strange  mutations: 

The  Roman  empire  has  begun  and  ended. 

New  worlds  have  risen — we  have  lost  old  nations. 

And  countless  kings  have  into  dust  been  humbled, 

While  not  a  fragment  of  thy  flesh  has  crumbled. 

Didst  thou  not  hear  the  pother  o'er  thy  head, 
Wlien  the  great  Persian  conqueror,  Cambyses, 

Marclied  armies  o'er  thy  tomb  with  thundering  tread, 
O'erthrew  Osiris,  Orus,  Apis,  Isis, 

And  shook  the  Pyramids  with  fear  and  wonder, 

When  the  gigantic  Memnon  fell  asunder? 

If  the  tomb's  seci'ets  may  not  be  confessed, 

The  nature  of  thy  private  life  unfold: 
A  heart  has  throbbed  beneath  that  leathern  breast, 

And  tears  adown  that  dusty  cheek  have  rolled: 
Have  children  climbed  those  knees,  and  kissed  that  face? 
What  was  thy  name  and  station,  age  and  race? 

Statue  of  flesh — Immortal  of  the  dead! 

Imperishable  type  of  evanescence  ! 
Posthumous  man,  who  quitt'st  thy  narrow  bed. 

And  standest  undecayed  within  our  presence. 
Thou  wilt  hear  nothing  till  the  Judgment  morning, 
When  the  great  Trump  shall  thrill  thee  with  its  Avarning. 

Why  should  this  worthless  tegument  endure. 

If  its  undying  guest  be  lost  for  ever? 
0 !  let  us  keep  the  soul  embalmed  and  pure 

In  living  virtue,  that  when  both  must  sever, 
Although  corruption  may  our  frame  consume, 
The  immortal  spirit  in  the  skies  may  bloom! 


252  hal's  travels. 

Mustapha  drives  a  good  business  opening  tombs 
and  selling  the  contents.  Eich  jewels  are  some- 
times found  in  the  sarcophagi  with  the  dead  bodies. 

Mustapha  Agah  is  a  high  functionary  in  Thebes. 
From  the  battlements  of  his  house  (a  mud  edifice 
standing  just  behind  the  great  columns  of  the  for- 
mer porch  of  the  Temple  of  Luxor)  float  both  the 
flags  of  Great  Britain  and  America.  He  is  con- 
sular agent  for  both  nations.  So  Mustapha  is  a 
great  man  among  the  Thebans — higher  than  the 
governor  himself.  I  shall  long  remember  Mus- 
tapha, and  so  will  every  American  who  visits 
Thebes — especially  if  he  drinks  cofiee  and  smokes 
the  fragrant  lataika.  Mustapha  never  fails  to  fur- 
nish his  visitors  with  the  chibouk  and  coflfee  in  true 
Eastern  style.  Mustapha  is  a  quiet,  pleasant  man, 
perhaps  fifty  years  old,  and  as  black  as  the  ace  of 
spades.  He  speaks  pretty  good  English,  but  can 
neither  read  nor  write.  You  may  think  it  strange 
that  a  United  States  consul  should  be  unable  to 
read,  but  then  you  must  remember  that  Mustapha 
is  in  Egypt,  and  fully  competent  to  attend  to  all 
matters  likely  to  come  before  him,  without  the  aid 
of  letters. 

The  time  has  now  almost  come  for  our  departure. 
This  evening,  ere  the  twilight  dews  begin  to  fall,  we 
shall  bid  farewell  to  Mustapha,  and  to  the  remains 
of  what  was  once  a  city  of  a  hundred  gates  !  Mus- 
tapha has  loaded  his  little  cannon,  and  will  doubt- 
less give  us  a  parting  salute,  for  he  pays  marked 
respect  to  Americans.     All  the  guns  and  pistols  on 


hal's  travels.  253 

board  the  "Hiawatha"  and  " ISIiimchaha"  are  in 
readiness  for  one  grand  discharge.  "We  shall  pro- 
ceed to  Grand  Cairo,  which  will  occupy  from  two  to 
three  weeks,  as  we  have  several  stoppages  to  make 
along  the  way.  From  Cairo  we  shall  make  a  break 
for  the  Holy  Laud.  Will  write  you  again  from 
Cairo. 

We  have  spent  six  days  in  Thebes,  which  is  little 
time  enough  to  see  the  ruins  here.  Those  who  have 
ample  time  should  sta}-  longer.  To  those  who  come 
here  I  commend  the  chibouk  and  coffee  of  Mustapha 
Agali  at  the  British  and  American  Consulate. 

But  evening  approaches,  and  I  must  close.  The 
"Minnehaha"  has  been  set  in  order,  and  will  soon 
be  afloat  upon  the  turbid  bosom  of  the  Nile  towards 
the  Great  Sea.  She  has  many  hundred  miles  to 
float.  If  I  kill  a  crocodile  on  the  downward  voyage, 
I  shall  make  a  note  of  it.     Farewell. 

Hal. 


254  hal's   travels. 


LETTER   XXV. 

THEBES    TO    THE     PYRAMIDS. 

Most  glorious  is  life  upon  the  Mle  !  I  have  tra- 
velled in  almost  every  way  that  man  ever  travelled : 
have  footed  it  upon  the  broad  plains  of  the  far 
West ;  have  dashed  across  the  same  plains  on  the 
wild  Mustang ;  have  floated  upon  the  bosom  of  the 
mighty  Mississippi  in  steamers  little  less  than 
palaces ;  have  descended  the  beautiful  Tennessee 
on  the  primitive  "broad-horn ;"  whizzed  from  one 
end  of  the  Union  to  the  other  on  the  "  iron  steed;" 
have  been  towed  upon  the  "  raging  canal ;"  steamed 
across  the  billowy  Atlantic;  traversed  the  wild 
regions  of  Switzerland,  and  crossed  the  towering 
Alps,  in  the  great  lumbering  diligence ;  rode  upon 
the  restless  bosom  of  the  blue  Mediterranean ; 
rocked  through  the  desert  on  the  back  of  the  fleet 
dromedary,  and  galloped  over  many,  many  miles  on 
the  nimble-footed  donke3^  In  all  these  ways  have 
I  travelled;  but  for  luxurious  pleasure,  none  of  them 
begin  to  compare  with  a  snug  boat  upon  the  Nile. 
Kile-travelling  is  "first-class"  poetry,  compared  with 
which  all  other  modes  are  commonplace  prose,  and 
that  of  the  most  prosy  kind. 


iial's  travels.  255 

This  is  now  tlic  eiglitli  or  ninth  week  that  we 
have  heen  in  blissful  ignorance  of  the  world.  We 
have  no  cares  except  to  eat,  drink,  and  sleep.  "We 
are  neither  cursed  with  news  nor  newspapers. 
Neither  pay  nor  receive  visits  from  gossiping 
neighbors ;  nor  does  the  post  or  carrier-boy  leave 
the  daily  or  weekly  paper  at  our  door.  Therefore 
we  are  happy.  We  pity  our  poor  deluded  friends 
in  America  who  keep  themselves  "posted"  by 
reading  the  papers,  and  distress  themselves  sorely 
when  things  don't  go  to  please  them.  Some  we 
know  are  miserable  because  they  see  horrible  spec- 
tres of  the  "  glorious  Union  busted  up"  and  clean 
gone ;  while  other  poor  devils  are  utterly  miserable 
because  of  their  inability  to  bring  about  said  "bust- 
up."  Other  some  distress  themselves  grievously  in 
view  of  the  making  of  the  next  President,  while 
ghosts  and  goblins  dire  haunt  the  visions  of  those 
"illustrious  self-sacrificing  patriots"  who  have  sig- 
nified their  willingness  to  yield  to  the  wishes  of 
their  countrymen,  and  to  be  placed  in  the  Presi- 
dential chair.  And  what  painful  anxiety  must 
weigh  upon  those  benevolent  men  who  take  it  upon 
themselves  to  arrange  and  pack  committees  and 
delegates  for  the  national  farce  (by  courtesy  called 
"  convention")  preparatorj'^  to  making  a  President ! 
I  say,  I  pity  j'ou,  my  enliglitencd  friends — from  my 
soul  I  do.  Would  that  you  could  have  a  few  weeks 
respite  upon  the  Nile  from  the  painful  cares  that 
beset  you  ! 

To  give  you  some  idea  of  our  ignorance — and 


256  HAL'S     TRAVELS. 

consequent  bliss — I  will  inform  you  that  we  do  not 
even  know  who  is  Speaker  of  the  House  of  Repre- 
sentatives, or  whether  it  has  a  Speaker  at  all.  We 
heard  in  Rome  (that  was  a  long  time  ago)  that  Con- 
gress had  met,  and  would  proceed  to  organize,  if 
such  a  thing  were  possible,  but  up  to  this  time  we 
have  not  heard  the  result.  We  have  ceased  to 
trouble  ourselves  with  either  speaking  or  thinking 
of  politics,  and  I  almost  dread  to  see  the  time  come 
when  the  state  of  public  affairs  in  Uncle  Sam's  do- 
minions shall  be  forced  upon  me.  Two  or  three 
weeks  ago  I  ventured  to  ask  my  friend  Smith  what 
his  ideas  were  about  the  state  of  politics  at  home. 
I  saw  a  cloud  of  any  thing  but  pleasure  darken  his 
brow;  he  puffed  his  chibouk  viciously  for  a  few 
moments,  and  then,  with  an  emphasis  peculiar  only 
to  Smith,  he  replied,  "D — n  politics!"  I  said  no 
more,  and  he  continued  to  puff  furiously.  I  thought 
strange  of  this,  for  Smith  was  a  rampant  politician 
when  I  first  knew  him.  But  such  is  the  effect  of 
travelling  in  the  East — especially  upon  the  Nile. 

But  this  is  not  telling  you  of  our  downward  voy- 
age from  Upper  Egypt.  Twelve  days  ago,  just  as 
darkness  was  settling  down  upon  the  ancient  city  of 
Thebes — but  while  it  was  yet  high  noon  in  Hunts- 
ville — the  Hiawatha  and  Minnehaha  were  loosed 
from  their  moorings  under  the  towering  portico  of 
grand  old  Luxor,  and  floated  out  into  the  stream, 
when  six  guns  from  the  boats  announced  their  de- 
parture for  the  lower  country.  These  guns  were 
responded  to  by  the  burning  of  a  pound  and  a  half 


hal's  travels.  257 

of  Eg3'ptian  powder  by  old  Mustaplia,  whoso  little 
cannon  thundered  forth  a  report  that  was  echoed  by 
the  mountains  and  cavernous  tombs  miles  away 
across  the  river,  and  we  were*  off,  gliding  away  from 
the  city  of  forty  centuries,  which  was  falling  into 
ruins,  perhaps,  while  the  seven  hills  of  Rome  were 
yet  a  wilderness. 

Our  progress  down  the  river  was  slow  indeed, 
owing  to  adverse  winds,  and  it  was  not  until  the 
afternoon  of  the  following  day  that  we  reached  the 
city  of  Ghena,  in  the  neighborhood  of  which  stands 
the  old  Temple  of  Dendera,  one  of  the  lions  of 
Egypt  that  must  needs  be  seen  by  all  travellers  who 
ascend  the  Nile.  "We  of  course  found  the  omni- 
present donkeys  waiting  for  us — they  are  always 
waiting,  and  such  donkeys !  Wish  I  could  send 
you  a  picture  of  our  party  as  we  mounted  those  don- 
keys and  rode  away.  You  would  laugh  some.  Three 
of  the  twelve  had  bridles,  and  five  had  saddles,  two 
of  the  saddles  had  stirrups,  the  rest  did  n't.  The 
donkeys  were  of  the  smallest  breed,  and  almost  as 
woolly  as  sheep,  which  they  resembled,  except  the 
ears.  When  mounted  by  their  riders,  little  could  be 
seen  but  their  head  and  part  of  their  tail.  The  ears 
were  all  the  portions  visible  of  those  ridden  by  the 
ladies — the  flowing  skirts  concealing  all  else.  The 
donkc}^  on  which  Miss  Kissiahwas  mounted,  though 
diminutive,  was  a  vicious  little  scoundrel,  and  man- 
aged early  in  the  excursion  to  spill  his  precious 
burden  upon  the  ground.  She  bravely  remounted, 
however,  and  with  two  Arabs  to  hold  her  on,  and  a 
9 


258  HAL'S    TRAVELS. 

third  to  lead,  slie  managed  to  stick  to  him  until  our 
return  to  the  boats.  Smith's  donkey  got  him  oS 
twice — (Smith  always  gets  thrown  ofi*) — once  by  fall- 
ing, and  the  second  tirfie  by  lying  down.  His  driver 
got  a  sound  cursing,  but  no  "backsheesh"  that  day. 

The  Temple  of  Dendera  is  comparatively  of  mod- 
ern date,  being  perhaps  something  less  than  two 
thousand  years  old !  Some  portion  of  it  is  said  to 
have  been  built  by  Cleopatra,  and  one  of  the  walls 
is  adorned  with  a  sculptured  portrait  of  that  queen 
in  bas-relief.  Her  son,  by  Julius  Ccesar,  is  standing 
by  her.  Like  all  other  Egyptian  temples,  it  is  a 
massive  building,  every  stone  of  which  is  carved 
with  images  and  hieroglyphics.  The  architecture  is 
magnificent.  With  the  exception  of  Karnak,  it  con- 
tains some  of  the  largest  columns  I  have  seen  in 
Egypt.  This  temple  is  almost  perfect,  but  much  of 
it  is  hid  by  the  ruins  of  the  mud-built  city  that  once 
surrounded  it.  The  rubbish  has  all  been  removed 
from  the  interior,  and  the  immense  halls  stand  va- 
cant and  desolate,  tenanted  only  by  bats  and  owls. 

Finishing  up  the  Temple  of  Dendera,  we  returned 
to  our  boats  through  luxurious  wlieat-fields — cut 
loose  and  floated  away,  with  the  sincere  desire  that 
the  next  party  of  travellers  may  find  better  donkeys 
than  we  found.  Three  days  after,  we  brought  up  at 
the  city  of  Girgch,  the  place  where  we  had  stopped 
on  the  upward  trip  to  see  the  Dervishes  and'  the 
dancing-girls.  We  did  n't  take  donkeys  here,  but 
determined  to  "do"  the  town  on  foot.  We  formed 
in  single  column,  and  marched  through  the  bazaars, 


hal's   travels.  250 

stared  at  and  followed  by  a  hundred  shirt-tail  na- 
tives. The  ladies  of  our  party  were  regarded  with 
admiration,  and  would  have  been  crowded  almost  to 
suttbcation  if  we  had  not  kept  the  crowd  back  by 
flourishing  our  sticks,  and  occasionally  cracking  the 
heads  of  the  more  curious.  They  stand  in  mortal 
dread  of  the  cane  or  "koorbash"  of  a  "howadji." 
A  koorbash  is  a  keen  whip,  made  of  the  liide  of 
rhinoceros. 

The  people  of  Girgeh  are  not  the  most  noted  of 
Egyptians  for  cleanliness.  Indeed,  they  may  be 
called,  by  fastidious  people,  filthy.  It  was  soon  after 
our  visit  to  this  city  on  the  way  up  that  the  horrible 
discovery  of  the  nameless  vermin  was  made  among 
us.  Mrs.  Smith  made  the  discovery  on  that  occa- 
sion, and  she  continues  to  affirm  to  this  day  that 
they  came  from  Girgeh,  which  is  probable.  Re- 
turning to  our  boats  after  this  our  second  visit,  which 
had  been  made  with  the  utmost  caution,  a  proposi- 
tion was  made  that  a  general  examination  be  gone 
into.  It  was  done,  and  the  result  was  horrifying. 
The  ladies  retired  to  their  cabins,  and  were  not  long 
in  finding  abundant  evidence  of  the  presence  of  the 
enemy.  The  gentlemen  stripped,  and  were  equally 
successful.  There  were  voices  of  lamentation  that 
evening  on  board  the  Minnehaha,  which  were 
heartily  responded  to  from  the  portals  of  the  Hia- 
watha. The  ladies  almost  sobbed,  so  great  was  their 
distress.  The  gentlemen  laughed,  and  tried  to  make 
a  joke  of  it ;  but  the  laugh  was  dry  enough,  and  the 
ladies  refused  to  be  comforted.     Smith,  as  his  cus- 


260  hal's    travels. 

torn  is,  tried  to  be  witty  on  the  occasion.  Smith  is 
always  trying  to  be  witty.  lie  said  "  there  was  no 
nse  trying  to  disguise  the  fact :  that  we  were  a  lousy 
set."  This  remark  brought  a  shower  of  indignation 
upon  Smith's  head  from  the  ladies,  each  of  whom 
called  him  a  "brute."  And  it  was  a  brutal  remark ; 
but  Smith  is  a  practical  man,  and  believes  in  calling 
things  by  the  right  name.  There  is  generally  some 
truth  in  what  Smith  says,  however  homely  his  lan- 
guage.    His  wit  is  not  always  apparent. 

Towards  night  we  loosed  from  Girgeh,  and  floated 
down  the  river,  carrying  with  us  vivid  imjyressions  of 
its  inhabitants.  In  due  course  of  time — I  don't  re- 
member how  long — we  arrived  at  Ossiout,  the  largest 
city  in  Middle  Egypt.  Here  we  of  course  found 
donkeys  in  waiting,  and  were  not  long  in  mounting 
and  setting  off  for  the  mountains  which  lie  just  back 
of  the  city.  Our  object  was  to  visit  the  tombs  which 
honeycomb  the  solid  stone  cliffs.  There  are  a  great 
many  of  them,  some  very  large,  say  forty  by  fifty 
feet  square,  smoothly  cut  in  the  solid  rock,  and 
adorned  with  thousands  of  hieroglyphics  and  figures 
in  bas-relief  on  the  walls.  Seated  on  some  loose 
stones  in  the  largest  one  of  these  tombs  we  sung 
several  hymns,  (it  was  the  Sabbath  day,)  winding  up 
with  some  good  old  camp-meeting  songs,  after  which 
we  departed  and  went  into  the  city.  Passing 
through  the  bazaars,  we  found  the  crowd  so  dense 
that  we  were  obliged  to  dismount  and  send  our  don- 
keys round  another  way,  while  we  crowded  through 
on  foot.     "We  met  a  funeral-procession,  the  largest 


hal's   travels.  261 

I  have  seen.  It  was  led  by  banners  and  drums. 
The  body  Lay  upon  an  open  bier,  and  immediately 
following  were  about  fifty  mourning-women,  whose 
hideous  yells  were  terrifying.  I  never  heard  such 
weeping.  You  would  have  thought  the  heart  of 
each  and  every  one  of  them  was  in  the  very  act  of 
breaking  snap  in  two.  They  were  hired  for  the 
occasion,  and  seemed  determined  to  earn  their 
wages. 

In  one  of  the  bazaars  of  this  city  I  saw  the  first 
really  handsome  Egyptian  woman  that  I  have  met 
with.  If  I  could  wield  the  pen  of  a  modern  novel- 
writer,  I  would  endeavor  to  give  you  some  idea  of 
her  beauty ;  for  nothing  short  of  that  could  do  her 
justice.  "Were  I  to  say  that  her  sparkling  black 
eyes  shone  like  diamonds,  and  her  teeth  like  pearls, 
it  would  not  be  exaggeration.  ISTor  would  it  be 
more  than  just  to  say  that  her  swelling  bosom  and 
beautifullj^-rounded  arm  were  such  as  a  Venus 
might  have  envied.  No  Grecian  beauty  ever  pos- 
sessed features  more  regular.  Showers  of  coal- 
black  tresses  fell  in  rich  profusion  upon  her  grace- 
ful neck,  and  lay  nestling  upon  her  voluptuous 
bosom,  just  enough  of  which  was  exposed  to  make 
one  anxious  to  see  more.  She  was  dressed  in  rich 
Oriental  costume,  with  full  flowing  silk  trowsers, 
clasped  at  the  ankles  with  heavy  gold  bands.  Her 
head,  neck,  bosom,  and  wrists  were  adorned  with 
golden  trinkets,  elegantly  wrought  into  various 
devices.  I  suppose  the  solid  gold  ornaments  she 
wore  were  worth,  by  weight,  at  least  a  thousand 


262  HAL'S     TRAVELS. 

dollars.  The  gracefulness  with  which  she  sat,  and 
the  mild  and  modest  expression  of  her  beautiful 
face,  belied  the  calling  of  this  fair  creature ;  for  she 
was  a  woman  of  the  town,  sitting  in  the  market- 
place, waiting  to  be  hired. 

Leaving  Ossiout,  we  next  halted  at  Eckmien,  a 
town  containing  twenty-five  or  thirty  thousand  in- 
habitants, without  .counting  the  dogs,  of  which 
latter  there  seemed  to  be  several  regiments.  All 
Egyptian  towns  swarm  with  dogs.  Eckmien  is 
noted  for  nothing  in  particular,  so  far  as  I  know, 
except  as  being  the  place  where  General  Adem  Bey 
is  stationed  with  the  flower  of  the  army  of  Egypt. 
Here  is  the  first  division  of  the  army,  and  the 
favorite  soldiers  of  the  Pasha.  They  are  all 
I^ubians,  and  as  black  as  night ;  but,  black  as  they 
are,  a  finer-looking  body  of  men  I  never  saw,  the 
least  one  of  which  is  six  feet  high,  and  as  straight 
as  an  Indian.  Adem  Bey,  the  commander,  is  a 
noble-looking  man,  standing  six  feet  six  in  his 
stockings,  and  wearing  a  fierce  moustache.  He  is 
a  brave  soldier,  and  one  of  the  first  ofiicials  in  the 
Government.  Besides  being  commander  of  the  first 
division  of  the  army,  he  is  at  present  acting  as  Deputy 
Governor  of  this  portion  of  Egypt.  As  to  color, 
General  Adem  Bey  is  as  black  as  a  stack  of  black  cats 
in  a  dark  cellar  at  midnight,  but  has,  withal,  a  mild 
and  pleasant  face.  Soon  after  we  landed  at  Eck- 
mien, my  friend  Smith  proposed  that  we  pay  a 
formal  visit  to  this  dignitary.  I  agreed,  of  course. 
So,  taking  our  dragoman,  we  sallied  forth  towards 


HAL'S    TRAVELS.  263 

the  encampment,  not,  however,  until  we  had  put 
on  clean  linen,  and  Smith  had  donned  his  regiment- 
als. Smith  would  carry  his  gun.  He  always  car- 
ries his  gun.  As  we  reached  the  encampment,  and 
were  passing  up  an  avenue  between  rows  of  white 
tents  and  black  soldiers,  approaching  the  marque 
of  the  General,  who  had  seen  us  coming  from  a 
distance,  and  dispatched  two  servants  to  welcome 
us  to  his  quarters,  it  was  then  and  there  that  Smith 
compromised  the  dignity  of  both  of  us,  and  came 
well-nigh  turning  our  pompous  visit  into  a  farce. 
It  was  in  this  wise :  Just  as  the  General  was  ad- 
vancing to  welcome  us,  in  true  Eastern  style,  (for 
my  companion's  gaud}'  gold  lace  and  gilt  buttons 
had  inspired  him  with  profound  respect,  if  not 
awe,)  Smith,  seeing  a  flock  of  pigeons  some  hun- 
dred or  two  3'ards  away,  broke  towards  them  in  a 
brisk  run  ;  nor  would  he  stop  until  he  had  shot  at 
them.  lie  missed,  of  course,  and  then  came  puffing 
and  blowing  back  to  the  tent,  evidently  pleased  that 
he  had  had  a  shot  at  the  birds.  The  General  sup- 
pressed a  smile,  while  the  servants  almost  burst 
with  laughter.  I  confess  that  my  face  burnt  with 
mortification,  but  Smith  heeded  none  of  these 
things.  Our  dragoman  introduced  us,  giving  my 
friend  the  title  of  Colonel.  Smith  seized  the  hand 
of  the  General,  and  gave  it  a  genuine  Yankee 
shake.  We  were  invited  to  seats  on  the  voluptuous 
divan,  by  the  side  of  our  entertainer,  while  servants 
brought  us  coffee  and  chibouks.  AVe  smoked  and 
chatted  with  his  sable  highness  for  nearly  an  hour, 


264  HAL'S    TRAVELS. 

and  found  him  to  be  a  man  of  no  mean  capacity.  He 
had  heard  of  America,  and  had  an  impression  that 
it  was  a  great  country,  but  far,  O  very  far  away ! 
Said  he  was  glad  to  see  Americans,  and  hoped  we 
had  enjoyed  our  visit  to  Egypt.  Smith  did  his  best 
to  impress  the  fact  upon  our  host  that  Americans 
were  the  greatest  people  in  the  world,  and  flatter- 
ingly insinuated  that  the  ISTubians  might  rank  next. 
This  flattering  speech  pleased  the  General  wonder- 
fully, and  the  servants  were  immediately  ordered  to 
refill  the  pipes  and  coflee-cups.  He  showed  us  his 
arms  and  accoutrements ;  also  those  of  his  soldiers. 
Had  all  his  musical  instruments  brought  in  and 
pompously  exhibited.  Expressed  much  regret  that 
our  visit  had  fallen  upon  the  Moslem  Sabbath, 
(Friday ;)  otherwise  he  would  have  given  us  a 
chance  to  review  his  soldiers  on  parade.  Would 
also  have  treated  us  to  a  musical  entertainment, 
and  a  characteristic  JSTubian  dance.  But  the  Koran 
forbade  these  performances  on  Friday,  and  we  had 
to  forego  the  pleasure.  Our  visit  to  Adem  Bey  was 
an  agreeable  one,  and  but  for  the  approach  of  even- 
ing, would  have  been  prolonged.  Smith  more  than 
ever  believes  in  the  power  of  gold  lace  and  gilt  but- 
tons, being  assured  that  it  was  his  uniform  that  in- 
sured our  welcome. 

Leaving  Eckmien,  our  next  stopping-place  was 
Beni-Hassen,  where  once  stood  a  considerable 
town ;  but  a  few  years  ago  it  was  destroyed,  and  its 
inhabitants  all  killed  by  Ibraham  Pasha,  except  a 
very  few,  who  escaped   by  running  the   gauntlet. 


HAL'S    TRAVELS.  265 

Notliiug  now  remains  but  the  blackened,  crumbling 
walls.  The  cause  of  the  destruction  of  this  town 
and  people,  was  their  thievish  and  marauding  pro- 
pensities. It  had  become  dangerous  for  travellers 
to  stop  there  to  see  the  many  large  and  curious 
tombs  in  the  neighborhood,  and  consequently  the 
Pasha  sent  his  soldiers  and  wiped  it  out  of  exist- 
ence. The  tombs  in  the  mountain  back  of  this  town 
are  man}'  and  curious ;  some  very  large,  and  nearly 
all  adorned  with  paintings — better  executed  than 
most  I  have  seen  elsewhere.  One  of  these  tombs 
is  peculiarl}^  interesting,  because  it  is  thought  by 
many  that  it  is  the  same  in  which  the  body  of 
Joseph  rested  until  the  exodus  of  the  Israelites. 
One  of  the  walls  bears  a  painting,  which  it  is 
thought  represents  the  arrival  of  Jacob  and  his 
sons  and  their  families  into  Egypt,  and  their  pre- 
sentation to  Pharaoh.  The  number  of  figures  in  the 
painting  corresponds  with  the  number  of  Israelites 
upon  their  first  arrival.  Their  flocks  and  herds  and 
little  ones  are  all  represented.  It  may  or  may  not 
be  Joseph's,  but  it  is  at  least  a  very  interesting 
tomb.  It  is  about  forty-five  feet  square,  and  per- 
haps fifteen  feet  to  the  ceiling,  which  is  supported 
by  several  columns. 

Below  Beni-Hassen  we  stopped  at  ]\Iinych,  and 
visited  a  very  large  sugar-manufactory,  in  which  are 
employed  six  hundred  men.  It  is  managed  by 
French  and  Russians.  "We  strolled  about  the  town 
some  time,  but  nothing  turned  up  worthy  of  note. 
Nearly  half  the  people  of  Minyeh  seem  to  be  one- 


266  HAL'S    TRAVELS. 

eyed,  and  dogs  are  numerous.  Our  next  stop  was 
at  Benisooef,  the  lirst  important  town  above  Cairo. 
"We  landed  about  two  miles  from  the  town,  which 
being  rather  an  out-of-the-way  place,  there  were  no 
donkeys  present  (a  wonder!)  to  carry  us  into  the 
city.  We  footed  it.  Went  through  the  bazaars, 
and  laid  in  a  fresh  supply  of  pipes  and  tobacco. 
Heard  a  quarrel  there  which  exceeded  any  thing 
in  the  way  of  a  war  of  words  I  ever  heard.  An  old 
woman  was  pitching  into  a  shopkeeper  in  the  most 
approved  high-pressure  style.  The  scene  was  ludi- 
crous beyond  description.  At  first  the  tongue  of 
the  man  went  like  a  bell-clapper,  but  he  soon  wilted 
before  that  old  woman.  She  assumed  a  thousand 
grotesque  shapes  and  attitudes,  swaying  her  arms 
in. the  air  like  winding  blades,  while  her  long  bony 
fingers  contracted  and  expanded,  and  clutched,  as 
though  she  was  tearing  the  very  w^ind-pipe  from  the 
neck  of  her  antagonist.  Her  eyes  glared  like  those 
of  an  enraged  hyena,  while  she  champed  her  teeth 
and  foamed  at  the  mouth  like  a  rabid  wild  boar. 
She  yelled  like  an  Indian,  and  drew  her  lean  swarthy 
face  into  a  myriad  of  frightful  contortions.  All  the 
time  the  words  flew  like  bullets,  and  seemed  to 
take  efiect,  for  the  man  grew  perceptibly  less  at 
every  onslaught.  When  the  old  woman  was  ex- 
hausted and  nearly  ready  to  fall,  a  young,  athletic 
woman,  about  the  size  of  a  jackass,  and  almost  as 
stout,  came  to  her  relief,  and  continued  the  war  in 
the  same  strain,  until  a  man  in  authority  approached 
and  put  an  end  to  the  fun.     At  the  close  of  this 


HAL    S    TRAVELS. 


267 


quarrel  we  hurried  to  our  boats,  and  floated  dowa 
the  river. 

It  is  now  the  fourteenth  day  since  we  left  Thebes. 
Our  progress  has  been  slow,  head  winds  having 
greatly  impeded  our  course.  Our  amusements  and 
pastimes  coming  down  have  been  about  the  same 
as  when  going  up — shooting,  running,  jumping,  and 
kicking  up  our  heels  generally.  Yesterday  being 
Sunday,  our  little  party  of  twelve  met  on  board  the 
Hiawatha,  and  while  you  were  sleeping  and  per- 
chance dreaming  in  Huntsville,  we  worshipped  God 
in  the  old  home  fashion,  with  prayers,  and  hymns, 
and  spiritual  songs — the  astonished  Arabs  standing 
round  and  looking  on  with  wonder,  as  we  bowed 
before  tlie  throne  of  grace. 


THE   PTRAMinS. 


We  are  now  irettiiisr  in  tlie  neighborhood  of  the 
pyramids.     Already  thoy  begin  to  loom  up  in  the 


268  hal's  travels. 

distance,  and  the  head  of  the  great  Sphynx  is  peer- 
ing above  the  sand-hills ;  hut  as  the  wind  is  strong 
against  us,  we  shall  not  reach  them  before  to-morrow, 
perhaps.  After  I  have  seen  and  climbed  some  of 
them,  I  will  write  you  another  letter. 

Yours,  etc.,  Hal. 


iial's  travels.  200 


LETTER  XXVI. 

PYRAMIDS    TO     JERUSALEJI. 

Prepare  for  a  long  stride — from  the  Nile  to  Jeru- 
salem— for  tins  letter  iimst  cover  all  the  time  and 
space  intervening  since  my  last  letter — which,  if  I 
remember  rightly,  was  closed  late  one  evening, 
many  days  ago,  as  we  floated  down  the  Nile  in 
sight  of  the  pyramids  of  Sakhara  and  Dashore.  It 
was  the  next  morning  after  the  close  of  that  letter, 
I  was  aroused  early  by  my  friend  Smith,  (who  is  al- 
ways up  with  the  lark,)  and  told  that  we  were  near 
the  pyramids.  I  stuck  my  head  out  of  the  window, 
and  found  the  nose  of  the  Minnehaha  stuck  in  the 
mud  on  the  west  bank  of  the  river,  and  the  gallant 
Hiawatha  moored  alongside — sails  all  furled.  In 
the  distance  were  the  pyramids,  just  gilded  by  the 
rising  sun.  All  our  party  were  soon  astir,  and  Mo- 
hammed was  ordered  to  hurry  up  his  cakes,  that  we 
might  have  an  early  breakfast  and  be  ofl".  Moham- 
med Avas  unusually  spry  that  morning,  and  by  seven 
o'clock  we  were  ready  to  start. 

Now,  my  friend,  if  you  feel  inclined  to  travel,  you 
may  imagine  yourself  one  of  our  party,  and  make 
the  excursion  with  us.     Here  arc  the  donkeys  wait- 


270  hal's    travels. 

ing  for  us.  You  may  mount  tliis  little  mouse- 
colored  one.  'No  matter  about  a  bridle — a  donkey- 
boy  will  guide  him  for  you  with  a  stick.  Your 
saddle  has  no  stirrups,  but  that  is  all  right  in  Egj^Dt. 
"With  Achmet  ahead,  we  will  strike  out  through 
this  large  palm-grove.  Half  an  hour's  ride,  and  here 
we  are  in  the  midst  of  the  ruins  of  old  Memphis,  or 
Noph.  We  look  around  upon  desolation.  See 
nothing  here  but  stupendous  piles  of  broken  bricks 
and  fallen  walls,  with  here  and  there  a  broken 
image  half  buried  in  the  earth.  "We  think  imme- 
diately of  the  prophecies  concerning  this  once  proud 
city :  "For  Noph  shall  be  waste  and  desolate,  with- 
out an  inhabitant;"  and  again,  "I  will  destroy  the 
idols,  and  will  cause  their  images  to  cease  out  of 
Noph."  How  literally  fulfilled !  The  images  and 
idols  are  all  prostrate  and  mutilated.  We  see  but 
one  that  is  worth  pausing  to  look  at ;  it  is  a  colossal 
statue  of  liameses  Second,  which,  when  standing, 
was  between  forty  and  fifty  feet  high.  It  is  fallen 
now,  and  its  feet  broken  ofi" — otherwise  perfect. 

We  will  hurry  on  now  to  the  pyramid  of  Sakhara 
— some  two  hours'  ride  farther.  See  how  it  grows 
upon  us  as  we  approach  it !  Is  it  not  immense  ?  And 
yet  it  is  a  small  afi:air  compared  with  the  one  we  will 
see  to-morrow — Cheops.  But  even  this  would  be  the 
w^onder  and  admiration  of  the  world  if  there  w^ere 
none  larger.  Our  dragoman  says  we  cannot  ascend 
this  pyramid.  We  don't  believe  him — so  here  w^e  go ! 
He  is  alarmed,  and  swears  more  than  a  hundred  times 
that  we  will  fall  and  break  our  necks.     He  lies,  for 


hal's  travels.  271 

here  we  are  on  the  very  pinnacle,  waving  our  hats 
at  the  astonished  Smith,  who  broke  down  wlien 
half-way  up,  and  returned  to  the  ground  to  keep 
the  ladies  company. 

But  let  us  return  to  the  earth  now,  and  go  to  the 
tomb  of  Apis — the  cavern  in  which  were  deposited 
the  sacred  bulls  worshipped  by  the  ancient  Egyp- 
tians. It  is  near  by.  Let  us  look  to  our  pistols, 
for  we  have  read  Mr.  Prime's  account  of  the  attack 
upon  himself  and  party,  by  a  hundred  and  tifty 
Arabs,  when  he  visited  this  tomb.  True,  he  and 
his  bold  dragoman  put  them  all  to  flight,  and  walked 
into  the  cavern  without  molestation  ;  but  they  may 
have  picked  up  some  courage  since  then,  and  may 
not  be  so  easily  routed  as  when  bearded  by  the  fierce 
"Brahccm  Efi:endi."  "We  are  all  armed,  and  Smith, 
besides  his  gun,  has  got  the  hatchet  from  the  boat, 
and  the  carving-knife  belonging  to  our  table  furni- 
ture ;  while  Brown  carries  his  volcanic  repeater  in  one 
hand  and  spiked  Alpenstock  in  the  other,  looking 
meanwhile  as  savage  as  a  thunder-storm.  The  rest 
of  us  carry  each  a  cop}'  of  Colt's  best  stuck  in  our 
belts.  Brave  indeed  must  be  the  hundred  and  fifty 
Bedouins  who  attack  our  party !  Now,  in  solid 
phalanx  we  move  on,  Smith  nobly  leading  the  van. 
We  approach  the  cavern,  but  see  not  the  enemy. 
Keep  a  sharp  look-out :  they  may  be  behind  those 
sand-hills,  ready  to  pounce  upon  us.  We  halt,  and 
send  Jones  ahead  to  reconnoitre.  He  returns  and 
reports  the  coast  clear.  All  right !  Let  us  enter. 
There  is  "  nary"  Bedouin  about.     No  doubt  Prime's 


272  iial's    travels. 

demonstration,  and  his  threat  to  throw  the  old  sheik 
of  the  tribe  "over  the  river  into  the  Red  Sea,"  fright- 
ened them  clean  away  entirely.  The  brave  "  Effendi" 
deserves  the  thanks  of  all  travellers  for  frightening 
away  this  band  of  thieves. 

But  is  not  this  a  tremendous  hole  in  the  ground  ? 
See,  it  is  a  finely  finished  gallery,  cut  in  the  living 
rock,  two  or  three  hundred  yards  in  length.  Here 
are  twenty-five  niches  in  the  sides,  each  one  con- 
taining a  mammoth  sarcophagus,  in  which  the 
bodies  of  the  sacred  bulls  were  placed  after  being 
embalmed.  Most  of  the  sarcophagi  have  been 
opened,  and  the  bull  mummies  removed.  One  of 
them  is  in  l^ew  York,  in  Dr.  Abbott's  collection 
of  Egyptian  antiquities.  Here  is  a  richly  finished 
chapel  in  which  is  the  broken  image  of  a  calf,  and  a 
prostrate  Egyptian  before  it.  Don't  you  suppose 
it  was  this  custom  among  the  Egyptians  that  first 
suggested  to  Aaron  the  idea  of  making  a  golden 
calf?     Very  likely,  you  say. 

AYell,  w^e  have  now  explored  this  tomb,  let  ns 
return  to  the  light  of  da}^  and  take  lunch,  for  I  am 
hungry.  Here,  we  will  eat  in  the  cool  shade  in  the 
mouth  of  the  tomb — rest  till  the  cool  of  the  evening, 
and  return  to  our  boats. 

Ghezeh !  Yes,  here  we  are  at  Ghezeh.  We 
floated  down  here  last  night  after  returning  to  our 
boats  from  the  Bull  Tombs.  Yonder  are  the  pyra- 
mids of  Cheops  and  Belzoni,  and  we  are  all  in  a 
fidget  to  be  off.     These  are  better  donkeys  than  we 


HAL'S    TRAVELS.  273 

had  yesterday,  and  we  will  set  oiF  in  a  brisk  gallop. 
The  pyramids  seem  just  out  yonder,  but  they  are 
six  miles  away.  Were  you  ever  so  deceived  in 
distance  ?  But  at  this  gait,  it  will  not  take  long  to 
get  there.  Stirrups  and  bridles  are  luxurious  ap- 
pendages to  donkeys — are  they  not  ?  Now  we  near 
the  base  of  old  Cheops.  Here  we  pass  by  the  great 
Sphynx,  about  which  we  have  read,  and  whose 
picture  we  have  so  often  looked  at  in  Olncy's  Geo- 
graphy. Although  it  is  a  perfect  figure  hewn  out 
of  a  mountain,  and  one  of  the  most  wonderful  things 
in  the  world,  we  will  not  stop  to  see  it  now,  but 
hasten  to  the  pyramid,  which  is  more  wonderful 
still.  Are  you  not  astonished  and  bewildered? 
Do  you  not  wilt  right  down  before  this,  the  greatest 
work  ever  conceived  by  man  ?  I  do.  I  feel  op- 
pressed— a  sensation  something  akin  to  nightmare — 
and  not  the  least  inclination  towards  an  effort  to 
comprehend  the  great  pile.  Kow,  first,  before  wo 
yield  ourselves  into  the  hands  of  these  savage-look- 
ing Arabs,  who  wait  here  to  carry  travellers  to  the 
top  of  the  pyramid,  let  us  ride  around  and  view  it 
on  all  sides.  Wonderful !  wonderful !  you  exclaim  ; 
and  so  it  is.  To  give  our  friends  at  home  some 
idea  of  its  size,  I  think  we  may  say  that  its  base 
covers  four  times  as  much  ground  as  the  public 
square  of  Iluntsville  ! — perhaps  more — certainly  not 
less. 

But  here  we  are  now,  in  a  crowd  of  a  hundred 
Arabs — great  stalwart  fellows.  What  a  scufiie ! 
Each  one  claims  the  privilege  of  conducting  us  to 


274  hal's   travels. 

the  top  of  the  pyramid ;  and  we  shall  be  fortunate 
if  we  get  out  of  their  hands  with  whole  bones.  We 
are  clutched  by  as  many  as  can  possibly  get  hold  of 
us  at  a  time,  and  each  one  seems  determined  to 
hold  his  grip.  Fighting  with  donkey-boys  is  child's- 
pla,y  to  this.  But  here  comes  the  old  sheik  of  the 
tribe  to  our  rescue.  He  orders  our  tormentors  to 
desist,  and  appoints  two  for  each  of  us,  who  hurry 
us  rapidly  from  rock  to  rock  up  the  rugged  steep 
before  us.  Pausing  to  rest  when  about  one-fourth 
of  the  .way  up,  we  see  all  our  party  winding  their 
way  up  behind  us,  except  Smith.  He  is  still  at  the 
base,  fighting  with  the  Arabs.  Before  reaching 
here  he  swore  roundly  that  no  yellow-skinned  devil 
of  an  Arab  should  carry  him  up  the  pyramid ;  that 
he  had  failed  yesterday  to  reach  the  top  of  Sakhara, 
and  that  he  would  to-day  go  up  Cheops  unassisted, 
to  retrieve  his  character — for  Smith  is  an  ambitious 
man.  He  tights  bravely,  but  in  vain,  for  it  is  not 
the  Arab  policy  to  let  any  one  go  up  without  aid 
and  "backsheesh."  Poor  Smith  is  exhausted,  and 
is  now  borne  up  the  rugged  height  in  the  arms  of 
his  tawny  friends.  He  has  ceased  to  struggle,  but 
swears  at  every  step  that  he  will  not  pay  them 
a  cent  for  their  labor.  iNow  here  we  are  at  the  top, 
higher  than  we  ever  were  before,  being  nearly  two 
hundred  yards  from  terra  firma.  On  top  is  a  plateau 
twenty  feet  square  perhaps,  so  that  we  can  sit  and 
rest  and  look  about  securely.  People  on  the  ground 
do  not  seem  to  us  near  so  large  as  grasshoppers. 
From  here  we  have  a  fine  view  of  Cairo  and  the 


hal's  travels.  275 

Nile — and  to  the  west  we  see  away  off  for  perhaps 
a  hundred  miles  into  the  great  Lih3^an  desert. 

We  now  descend,  and  go  into  the  heart  of  this 
great  pile  of  stone.  This  part  of  our  da3^'s  work 
will  not  leave  a  favorable  impression.  "We  shall 
only  remember  it  as  a  laborious  winding  and  crawl- 
ing through  dark,  hot,  dusty  labyrinths,  where  suf- 
focation seemed  almost  inevitable.  We  find  two 
large  chambers,  one  called  the  King's,  and  the  other 
the  Queen's  tomb.  This  is  all. 
•  Smith,  you  observe,  has  got  over  his  passion,  and 
is  in  excellent  humor.  Instead  of  refusing  to  pay 
the  fellows  who  carried  him  up  the  pyramid,  he 
has  paid  them  more  than  double.  They  have  been 
expatiating  upon  the  beauty  of  Mrs.  Smith,  and 
have  thereby  struck  the  old  gentleman  in  a  tender 
place — for  Smith  has  his  weak  points. 

We  will  now  lunch  and  rest,  after  which  Ave  will 
return  to  our  boats,  marvelling  at  the  greatness  of 
the  works  of  Egypt.  It  will  be  night  when  we  get 
there,  and  so  we  will  sleep  as  we  float  down  the  river. 

Cairo,  the  Grand !  the  jSIagnificent !  the  Beauti- 
ful !  Here  we  are  again  in  "  Cairo  the  Victorious  !" 
How  delightful  to  get  once  again  into  a  fine  city, 
after  wandering  for  Aveeks  among  mud-  huts  and 
squalid  villages  !  How  gay  the  streets,  and  Avith 
what  glee  Ave  mount  the  tat,  round  Cairo  donkey, 
and  dash  through  them !  This  pleasure  almost 
counterbalances  tlie  regrets  aa'C  experience  in  leav- 
ing our  dear  little  "  Minnehaha,"  in  Avhich  we  have 


276  hal's  travels.' 

dwelt  with  so  mucti  ease  and  delight  for  more  than 
six  weeks.  The  removal  is  a  sad  one,  hut  the  bustle 
and  gayety  in  this  great  city  of  five  hundred  thou- 
sand people  will  soon  dispel  the  sadness. 

We  take  rooms  at  the  "Hotel  des  Pyramides," 
and  will  now  be  o&  for  a  ride.  Here  we  go,  down 
the  street,  full  speed  to  the  park,  or  great  square,  by 
the  "Hotel  d' Orient."  Hold!  "Halloo,  Captain! 
is  that  you  ?  Sure  enough  it  is !  Captain  Jim 
Williams,  of  Tennessee,  United-  States  Minister  to 
the  Sublime  Porte.  Glad  to  see  you.  Captain. 
Give  us  your  hand.  You  are  looking  remarkably 
well.  First  home-face  I  've  seen  in  the  East.  Just 
from  Constantinople,  eh  ?  Waiting  here  for  your 
family,  who  have  gone  up  the  Nile  ?  Yes,  we  heard 
of  them  up  there.  Return  home  in  eight  days,  do 
you  ?  Thank  you.  We  will  call  at  the  Legation, 
when  we  reach  the  Golden  Horn.  'No ;  we  have 
heard  no  news  from  home  for  many  weeks,  nor  do 
we  seek  any.  Don't  tell  us  any,  if  you  please. 
Sorry  you  told  us  of  the  election  of  Speaker  of  the 
House  of  Representatives.  Thank  you.  We  will 
call  at  3^our  room  this  evening,  and  get  what  informa- 
tion you  can  give  us  about  travelling  in  Syria,  as  you 
have  recently  taken  a  tour  in  that  country.  We 
leave  for  Jerusalem  in  three  days.     Good-day !" 

We  spend  three  or  four  days  in  Cairo,  shopping 
and  riding  and  walking,  visiting  mosques  and  such 
places  of  interest  as  we  failed  to  see  when  here 
before. 


hal's   travels.  277 

Now  let  us  be  off  for  Alexandria ;  for  the  steamer 
sails  from  there  to-morrow  for  Joppa,  and  we  must 
be  on  hand.  We  go  to  the  depot  and  buy  our  tickets 
from  a  big  black  nigger,  who  cheats  us  out  of  several 
pennies,  in  making  change.  There  are  only  ten  of 
us  now — t^vo  of  our  party,  Mr.  and  Mrs.  S.,  pas- 
sengers of  the  Hiawatha,  having  stopped  in  Cairo. 
We  give  them  up  with  much  regret.  The  train 
reaches  Alexandria  about  eleven  o'clock  at  night, 
and  we  again  domicile  at  the  India  Hotel.  Smith  of 
course  quarrels  with  the  landlord,  and  beats  him 
down  in  his  prices.  Smith  always  argues  the  great 
difference  between  wholesale  and  retail,  and  gene- 
rally gains  his  point.  It  would  be  hard  for  our 
party  to  get  along  without  Smith,  although  I  must 
confess  that  I  am  sometimes  seriously  provoked 
with  him. 

The  time  has  now  come  for  us  to  go  aboard  the 
steamer.  We  all  settle  our  bills  at  the  hotel,  except 
Mr.  Smith,  who  seriously  disputes  his,  because 
there  is  an  item  of  sixpence  in  it  that  he  contends 
ought  not  to  be  there.  lie  swears  he  will  not  pay 
it,  and  the  landlord  swears  he  shall.  We  start  for 
the  door,  but  Smith  is  stopped  by  the  landlord, 
backed  by  all  the  servants  about  the  hotel,  from  the 
head-waiter  down  to  the  bar-tender.  The  door  is 
closed  on  him,  and,  by  main  force,  they  wrench  the 
entire  sum  of  sixpence  from  the  enraged  Smith, 
before  permitting  him  to  depart.  I  will  not  say 
that  they  frightened  the  brave  Smith,  but  then  a 
dozen  stalwart  waiters,  including  the  cook,  with  a 


278  hal's  travels. 

huge  butclier-knife,  is  not  just  tlie  crowd  for  one 
man  to  contend  with,  when  a  sixpence  will  settle 
the  difficulty.  The  old  gentleman  thinks  a  little 
hard  because  the  rest  of  us  did  not  back  him  in  the 
fight ;  but  I  guess  he  will  get  over  it  soon.  "We  are 
all  glad  of  it ;  for  penuriousness  is  his  besetting  sin, 
and  we  wanted  to  see  him  taken  down. 

We  have  a  smooth  and  pleasant  sail  of  thirty-six 
hours,  when  the  towers  of  Jaflfa  (ancient  Joppa) 
loom  up  before  us.  The  country  before  us  is  Pales- 
tine !  We  are  about  to  tread  upon  holy  ground. 
We  hardly  realize  it,  but  it  is  so.  We  leave  the 
steamer  and  go  ashore  in  small  boats,  and  here  we 
are,  actually  in  Joppa — a  city  that  is  said  to  have 
existed  even  before  the  flood,  and  to  be  the  very 
place  where  !N"oah  built  the  ark.  It  was  at  this 
port  that  Hiram,  King  of  Tyre,  landed  the  cedar 
timbers  which  he  sent  from  Lebanon,  for  the  build- 
ing of  Solomon's  temple.  Hiram  and  Solomon 
were  very  great  friends.  This,  too,  is  the  place 
where  Jonah  came,  when  he  wanted  to  run  away, 
to  keep  from  going  to  Mneveh  to  preach.  He 
found  a  ship  about  to  sail  for  Tarshish,  and — but 
you  know  the  story  about  the  whale.  The  Apostle 
Peter  came  down  here  once,  and  lodged  with  one 
Simon,  a  tanner,  who  had  his  tan-yard  somewhere 
by  the  seaside.  Part  of  the  house  of  Simon  you 
see  standing  here  yet,  and  here  in  the  court  is  a 
well,  by  which  stands  a  very  large  stone  trough, 
which  they  tell  us  was  a  vat  used  by  Simon  for  tan- 
ning leather.     Peter  had  a  remarkable  dream  while 


iial's   travels.  279 

sleeping  upon  the  top  of  this  house,  an  account  of 
which  you  will  find  by  reading  the  ninth  chapter  of 
Acts.  During  that  same  visit  Peter  performed  a 
wonderful  miracle — even  the  raising  of  Tabitha 
from  the  dead.  Joppa,  you  see,  is  not  a  very  large 
place,  but  is  very  beautiful  to  look  at — from  a 
distance.  It  is  built  upon  a  rock,  which  is  in  shape 
something  like  a  potato-hill.  The  houses  are  all  of 
stone,  and  very  substantial.  The  streets  arc  from 
four  to  six  feet  wide,  and  in  many  places  we  ascend 
them  by  steps,  like  going  up  stairs.  We  all  go  in 
a  body  now,  and  call  upon  Rev.  Mr.  Sanders, 
American  Consul  and  Missionary  at  Joppa.  We 
are  delighted  with  the  family,  for  they  receive  and 
entertain  us  like  home-folks. 

But  we  must  not  tarry  in  Joppa.  Our  dragoman 
has  procured  horses,  and  we  must  be  on  the  road  to 
Jerusalem.  We  sleep  at  Ramleh  (ancient  Arima- 
thea)  to-night,  some  ten  or  twelve  miles  on  the  way. 
Let  us  mount  and  be  off.  But  wait!  Smith, 
Brown,  and  myself  go  down  and  take  a  sea-bath 
first,  after  which  we  sally  out  at  the  Jerusalem  gate, 
(which,  b}''  the  way,  is  the  only  gate  on  the  land 
side  of  Joppa,)  and  take  our  way  through  the  finest 
orange -groves  perhaps  in  the  world;  for  Joppa, 
you  know,  is  noted  for  oranges.  The  different 
groves  or  orchards  are  fenced  with  prickly-pear 
hedges,  which  grow  to  enormous  size.  We  see 
some  with  trunks  three  feet  in  diameter.  We  soon 
leave  the  orange  -  groves  and  enter  upon  a  most 
beautiful  plain,  everywhere  blooming  with  flowers. 


280  nAL'S    TRAVELS. 

Two  hours'  ride  brings  us  to  Lydda,  a  very  ancient 
town ;  the  same  where  the  Apostle  Peter  cured 
Eneas  of  the  palsy,  after  he  had  kept  his  bed  eight 
years. 

About  night  we  arrive  at  Ramleh,  and  sleep  in  a 
convent,  being  well  received  and  entertained  by  the 
monks.  Early  in  the  morning  we  visit  an  old  ruin, 
with  a  very  high  tower,  just  outside  the  town,  of  the 
history  of  which  we  know  nothing.  From  its  sum- 
mit we  have  a  fine  view  of  the  hill  country  towards 
Jerusalem ;  but  owing  .to  the  fog  in  that  direction, 
we  cannot  see  Mount  Carmel. 

Leaving  Ramleh,  we  soon  strike  into  the  moun- 
tains, where  locomotion  is  exceedingly  difficult, 
owing  to  the  stony  road,  or,  we  might  say,  owing  to 
the  absence  of  a  road.  It  is  a  sterile  country,  the 
rocks  showing  their  teeth  on  every  side,  with  scarce 
soil  enough  to  afford  any  green  thing,  except  in  the 
little  valleys.  We  pass  through  the  valley  of  Aja- 
lon,  which  will  be  for  ever  memorable,  on  account 
of  the  great  battle  fought  there  between  the  Israel- 
ites and  Amorites,  when  Joshua  commanded  the 
sun  to  stand  still  upon  Gideon,  and  the  moon  in 
the  valley  of  Ajalon.  You  will  find  an  account  of 
the  fight  somewhere  in  the  book  of  Joshua.  We 
see  little  more  of  interest  in  the  way,  except  the 
tomb  of  Samuel,  which  is  covered  by  a  mosque  on 
the  summit  of  the  mountain. 

We  are  getting  near  Jerusalem,  and  our  impa- 
tience to  see  the  Holy  City  increases.  We  spur  our 
jaded  horses  on,  and  after  climbing  another  and 


iial's    travels.  281 

another  moiintaiu,  the  glorious  sight  appears  !  We 
pause  and  look.  "We  see  little  of  the  city  except 
the  high  walls  and  the  domes  of  the  highest  houses. 
We  see  that  mountains  are  truly  all  around  about 
the  city,  and  that  the  city  and  its  surroundings  are 
beautiful.  We  exclaim,  "  Beautiful  for  situation,  the 
joy  of  the  whole  earth,  is  Mount  Zion,  the  city  of 
the  Great  King  !"  We  enter  by  the  Jaffa  or  Beth- 
lehem gate,  and  wind  our  way  through  the  dark, 
narrow  streets,  to  the  Mediterranean  Hotel,  which 
is  hard  by  the  Church  of  the  Holy  Sepulchre.  We 
are  intensely  interested  in  every  thing  we  see ;  for 
there  is  not  a  locality  in  or  around  the  city  that  is 
not  holy. 

After  spending  a  few  days  here,  we  shall  go  down 
to  Jericho,  the  Jordan,  and  the  Dead  Sea,  then  to 
Hebron  ;  after  which  we  will  return  here,  and  spend 
a  few  more  days  before  setting  out  to  the  North, 
towards  Damascus. 

Yours  truly,  Hal. 


282  hal's  travels. 


LETTER   XXVII. 


JERUSALEM. 


I  HAVE  now  been  ten  days  in  and  around  Jerusa- 
lem. I  have  gone  about  Zion ;  have  walked  upon 
the  walls  and  told  the  towers  thereof.  Have  stood 
upon  Calvary,  and  sat  upon  the  Mount  of  Olives ! 
Strolled  down  the  valley  of  Hinnom,  and  humbled 
myself  in  the  valley  of  Jehoshaphat.  Knelt  in  the 
Garden  of  Gethsemane,  and  sung  songs  of  rejoicing 
upon  the  Mount  of  Ascension.  Drunk  from  the 
Pools  of  Solomon,  and  washed  in  the  Pool  of  Siloam. 
Worshipped  in  the  city  of  Bethlehem,  and  rested  in 
the  quiet  village  of  Bethany.  Sat  in  the  shade  of 
the  broad-spreading  oaks  of  Mamre,  and  v»^alked 
through  the  vineyards  of  Eshcol.  Slaked  my  thirst 
at  the  Fountain  of  Elisha,  and  bathed  in  the  waters 
of  the  Jordan.  Have  indeed  wandered  for  many 
days  amid  sacred  scenes,  and  in  holy  places,  of  the 
which  I  would  love  to  present  you  a  faithful  account, 
but  that  were  impossible.  The  undertaking  would 
be  too  great.  If,  however,  you  are  disposed  to  make 
a  little  excursion,  we  will  pay  a  hasty  visit  to  some 
of  the  interesting  localities. 

We  will  start  from  St.  Stephen's  Gate,  on  the  east 


HAL'S     TRAVELS.  283 

side  of  the  city.  It  is  called  the  Gate  of  St.  Ste- 
phen because  the  martyr  Stephen  was  led  out  here 
to  be  stoned  to  death.  Here,  just  within  this  gate, 
is  the  Pool  of  Bethesda,  the  same  around  which  the 
"impotent  folk,  of  blind,  halt,  and  withered,"  used 
to  lie  and  wait  for  the  troubling  of  the  waters. 
Here  Jesus  healed  a  man  who  had  been  diseased 
thirty-eight  years.  The  pool  is  three  hundred  and 
sixty  feet  long,  one  hundred  and  thirty  broad,  and 
thirty -five  deep.  It  is  almost  dr}^  now.  Leaving 
this  pool,  we  go  up  through  the  city  along  the  Via 
Dolorosa,  or  the  "  mournful  way,"  so  called  because 
it  was  up  this  street  our  Saviour  went  to  Calvary 
bearing  his  cross.  The  first  place  of  interest  we 
reach  is  the  house  of  Pilate,  the  same,  or  at  least  on 
the  same  ground,  where  the  mock  trial  was  had  and 
Jesus  condemned,  and  where  he  was  scourged,  and 
a  crown  of  thorns  placed  upon  his  head.  From  the 
top  of  this  house  we  look  down  upon  the  plateau 
on  which  stood  the  Temple  of  Solomon.  In  the 
midst  of  it,  and  just  over  the  spot  where  the  Ark  of 
the  Covenant  stood,  stands  the  Mosque  of  Omar, 
which  is  guarded  strictly  to  prevent  Christians  en- 
tering. This  is  the  nearest  approach  we  can  make 
to  it,  the  Moslems  believing  that  the  touch  of  a 
Christian  would  defile  their  sacred  edifice.  The 
mosque  is  a  fine  octagonal  building  with  a  graceful 
dome,  and  the  square  around  it  very  beautiful — a 
fine  position  for  the  splendid  building  which  once 
occupied  it. 
Leaving  the  house  of  Pilate,  we  proceed  up  the 


284  hal's  travels. 

street  towards  Calvary  and  the  cliiircli  of  the  Holy- 
Sepulchre.  Our  guide  points  out  many  stations 
along  the  way  where  incidents  occurred  as  the  Lord 
passed  along.  The  places  where  he  fainted  are 
shown,  and  the  place  where  the  cross  was  taken  from 
him  and  placed  upon  Simon  the  Cyrenean. 

We  enter  the  church  of  the  Holy  Sepulchre,  and 
near  the  door  see  multitudes  of  people  falling  down 
and  kissing  a  large  marble  slab.  This  we  are  told 
is  the  "stone  of  unction,"  where  the  body  of  the 
Lord  was  embalmed  for  the  burial.  "Without  paus- 
ing, we  hasten  to  the  interior,  and  after  crowding, 
squeezing,  pushing,  and  jamming  for  half  an  hour, 
in  a  dense  crowd  of  the  most  motley  people  we 
have  seen  this  side  of  Naples,  we  gain  admittance 
into  the  room  in  which  is  the  Holy  Sepulchre.  We 
stoop  down  and  look  in,  and  then  enter  the  very 
tomb  in  which  the  great  Redeemer  of  mankind  lay 
for  three  days !  It  is  a  holy  place,  and  we  enter  it 
with  no  little  awe.  Coming  out  of  the  sepulchre, 
we  ascend  a  flight  of  steps  in  another  part  of  the 
building,  and  stand  upon  Calvary,  and  see  the  very 
rock  in  which  the  cross  was  planted.  We  only 
tarry  in  these  places  for  a  moment,  promising  our- 
selves more  time  upon  some  future  occasion.  The 
crowd  here  is  too  dense  for  enjoyment,  for  this  is 
the  season  for  the  pilgrims  to  be  in  Jerusalem,  and 
they  of  course  all  flock  flrst  to  the  Church  of  the 
Holy  Sepulchre.  These  pilgrims  are  not  just  the 
kind  of  people  we  would  desire  to  see  them.  They 
are  rough,  ignorant,  superstitious  creatures,  many 


iial's   travels.  285 

of  whom  have  journeyed  from  far  countries  to  Jeru- 
salem without  once  changing  their  garments,  and 
are,  consequently,  any  thing  hut  clean.  They  be- 
lieve that  a  pilgrimage  to  the  Holy  Sepulchre  seals 
their  everlasting  salvation,  and  they  make  the  pil- 
grimage at  all  hazards.  The  smell  in  such  a  crowd 
is  not  so  sweet  as  roses,  and  we  only  stop  long 
enough  this  time  to  see  the  most  noted  localities  in 
this  large  building,  such  as  the  tombs  of  Melchise- 
dek,  Godfrey,  and  Baldwin — the  place  where  the  Sa- 
viour appeared  to  man}^  after  ho  was  risen,  the  place 
where  the  cross  was  found,  etc.  We  observe  in 
passing  that  the  church  is  exceedingly  rich  in  gold 
and  silver  lamps  and  chains,  and  some  parts  decked 
out  in  such  profusion  of  gilded  ornaments  as  to  ap- 
pear ridiculous.  The  church  is  cut  up  into  almost 
innumerable  chapels  and  compartments,  and  when 
all  the  different  sects  claiming  rights  here  are  wor- 
shipping, it  is  a  Babel,  if  not  worse.  The  Greeks, 
Latins,  Armenians,  and  Copts  occupy  different  parts 
of  the  house,  and  each  sect  does  its  level  best  to 
make  more  noise  than  its  neighbor,  which  is  hard  to 
do.  The  Greeks  are  in  the  ascendant,  and  outsquall 
the  rest,  but  then  the  cracked  and  crazy  organ  of 
the  Latins  comes  in  for  a  large  share  of  glory  in  the 
way  of  making  a  noise.  These  different  sects  hate 
each  other  like  cats  and  dogs,  and,  but  for  the  body 
of  Turkish  soldiers  always  on  hand,  would  fight  as 
such.  This  fs  a  humiliating  thought  for  Christians. 
My  friend  Smith  talks  like  a  book  on  this  subject, 
and  says  if  he  had  the  power  he  would  wipe  the 


286  hal's  travels. 

whole  establishment  from  the  face  of  the  earth,  and 
disperse  the  fanatical  zealots  who  worship  here  to 
the  four  quarters  of  the  globe.  Smith  is  right. 
The  scenes  enacted  here  are  disgraceful  instead  of 
honoring  to  Christianity. 

Leaving  the  church  of  the  Holy  Sepulchre,  we  tra- 
verse the  narrow,  gloomy  street  through  the  Jewish 
quarter  of  the  town,  and  enter  the  Synagogue  of 
the  Jews,  where  worship  is  going  on.  The  house 
is  crowded  with  men,  while  the  women  stand  out- 
side in  the  open  court.  The  leader  of  the  meeting 
delivers  his  discourse  sitting,  after  which  the  whole 
congregation  join  in  chanting  the  Law.  A  scroll  is 
exhibited,  and  the  people  seem  almost  frantic  at  the 
sight  of  it,  and  as  many  as  can  possibly  do  so,  rush 
to  and  kiss  it  or  the  veil  which  had  concealed  it.  It 
is  a  copy  of  the  Law — very  ancient.  Their  worship 
seems  to  be  sincere,  and  their  reverence  for  the  Law 
of  Moses  profound  indeed.  I  believe  these  Jews 
worship  God  in  spirit  and  in  truth,  and  look  perhaps 
more  anxiously  for  the  first  coming  of  the  Messiah 
than  Christians  do  for  his  second  coming. 

Leaving  the  Synagogue,  we  wind  through  some 
narrow  crooked  lanes,  which  it  would  be  vain  to 
attempt  without  a  guide,  and  reach  a  section  of  the 
ancient  wall  that  surrounded  the  Temple  of  Solomon. 
This  is  the  "Jews'  Place  of  Wailing."  Here  the  Jews 
have  been  permitted  for  many  centuries  to  approach 
the  precincts  of  the  Temple  of  their  'fathers,  and 
bathe  its  hallowed  stones  with  their  tea.rs.  It  is  a 
touching  scene :  Jews  of  both  sexes,  of  all  ages,  and 


hal's  travels.  287 

from  every  quarter  of  the  earth,  are  here  raising  up 
a  united  cry  of  lamentation  over  a  desolated  sanc- 
tuary. Old  men  may  be  seen  tottering  up  to  these 
massive  stones,  kissing  them  with  fond  rapture, 
while  tears  stream  down  their  cheeks.  Well  may 
the  poor  Jews  repeat  the  words  of  the  Psalmist, 
(Ixxix,  1,  4,  5 :)  "  O  God,  the  heathen  are  come  into 
thine  inheritance  ;  thy  hoi}''  temple  have  they  de- 
filed ;  they  have  laid  Jerusalem  on  heaps.  "We  are 
become  a  reproach  to  our  neighbors,  a  scorn  and 
derision  to  them  that  are  round  about  us.  How 
long,  Lord  ?  wilt  thou  be  angry  for  ever  ?  Shall 
thy  jealousy  burn  like  fire?"  These  Jews  may  be 
seen  here  in  this  little  paved  area  weeping  and  wail- 
ing every  Friday. 

"We  now  leave  the  Place  of  "Wailing,  and  emerge 
from  the  city  at  the  Zion  gate,  and  stand  upon  that 
portion  of  the  hill  of  Zion  which  is  now  without  the 
walls.  It  is  a  "ploughed  field"  now,  according  to 
the  propliecy  concerning  it.  Not  far  from  the  gate 
is  the  tomb  of  David.  A  large  mosque  stands  over 
it,  and  it  is- considered  by  Moslems  too  holy  a  place 
for  Cliristians  to  enter.  So  we  cannot  see  the  tomb 
of  the  great  Shepherd  King,  the  mosque  being 
closely  guarded.  Near  the  tomb  is  the  house  of 
Caiaphas,  now  an  Armenian  convent.  "We  enter, 
and  are  shown  the  little  room  in  which  Jesus  was 
imprisoned  ori  the  same  night  in  which  he  was  be- 
trayed and  led  away  from  the  garden  of  Geth- 
semane  to  (Oaiaphas.     "We  also  see  the  rock  which 

/ 


288  hal's  travels. 

was  rolled  before  the  door  of  the  sepulchre,  and 
which  the  angels  rolled  away. 

We  pass  on  round  the  city  wall,  and  at  the  Joppa 
Gate  enter  the  Tower  of  Hippicus,  in  which  Ilerod 
had  his  palace.  David's  palace  was  also  here.  It- 
is  a  very  strong  fortress,  and  bears  marks  of  great 
antiquity.  Scattered  along  the  different  roads  that 
lead  away  from  this  gate  we  see  many  poor  lepers 
sitting  begging.  They  are  the  most  pitiable-look- 
ing objects  we  ever  saw.  I  suppose  they  sit  here 
now  just  as  they  did  in  the  time  of  our  Saviour ; 
but  there  is  none  to  heal  them  now.  We  see  these 
miserable  wretches  sitting  without  every  gate. 
From  this  Joppa  gate  we  go  down  into  the  Valley 
of  Hinnom,  which  lies  between  Mount  Zion  and  the 
Hill  of  Evil  Council.  Passing  by  the  upper  and 
lower  pools  of  Gihon,  which  are  immense  reservoirs, 
we  enter  the  deeper  portion  of  the  valley,  and  sit- 
ting down  in  a  quiet  shad}\  place,  beneath  the  olive 
trees,  where  the  early  sprnjg  grass  is  green  and 
beautiful,  we  sing  some  of  th^  songs  of  Zion.  Con- 
tinuing down  the  valley,  we  «ome  to  the  well  En- 
Rogel,  at  the  junction  of  the  vaAjeys  of  Hinnom  and 
Jehoshaphat.  It  was  at  this  well  Lsjiat  Adonijah  once 
got  up  a  great  feast,  or  barbecJae,  to  which  he 
invited  all  the  people,  and  in  th>^  midst  of  the 
hilarity  he  caused  himself  to  be  proclaimed  king, 
instead  of  his  father  David.  Adonijah,  like  his 
brother  Absalom,  was  an  ambitious  yoi\ng  man,  but 
not  very  successful.     This  well  is  one  hiandred  and 


iial's  travels.  289 

twenty-five   feet  deep.      The  ^water  is   sweet  and 
good. 

Leaving  the  well,  En-Rogel,  we  now  turn  up  the 
Valley  of  Jehoshaphat,  following  the  road  along  the 
margin  of  the  brook  Kidron.  Two  or  three  hun- 
dred yards  bring  us  to  the  King's  Gardens,  a  beau- 
tiful spot,  highly  cultivated.  Hard  by  is  the  Pool 
of  Siloam,  into  which  we  descend  and  drink  of  the 
pure  water,  which  is  clear  as  crj'stal.  Nehemiah 
(iii.  15)  mentions  the  King's  Gardens  as  being  be- 
side the  Pool  of  Siloah.  On  the  opposite  side  of 
the  valley  from  this  pool  is  the  village  of  Siloam, 
clinging  to  the  rocky  side  of  the  Mount  of  Offence. 
It  was  here  the  tower  fell  and  killed  the  eighteen 
men.  As  to  the  Pool  of  Siloam,  you  of  course 
remember  the  story  of  the  man  who  was  born  blind, 
and  restored  to  sight  by  washing  in  this  pool.  We 
all  likewise  wash  in  it.  Not  far  above  this  pool  is 
the  Fountain  of  the  Virgin,  at  which,  says  the 
legend,  women  accused  of  adultery  in  former  times 
were  compelled  to  drink.  If  innocent,  it  harmed 
them  not;  but  if  guilt}^,  they  died  immediately. 
When  the  Virgin  Mary  was  accused,  she  submitted 
to  the  ordeal,  and  thus  established  her  innocence. 
Hence  its  name.  We  now  pass  innumerable 
tombs.  The  slope  of  the  hill  to  the  right  is  full  of 
them,  and  many  are  hewn  out  in  the  rocky  clitfs, 
and  now  stand  open  and  ghastly.  Iligher  up  the 
valley  we  pass  the  tombs  of  Absalom,  Zcchariah, 
and  the  Apostle  James.  They  are  near  together, 
are  large  and  finely  ornamented  tombs,  cut  in  the 
10 


290  hal's  travels. 

side  of  the  mountain.  The  tomb  of  Absalom  is 
the  finest,  but  the  massive  stone  monument  is 
defaced  by  the  millions  of  pebbles  that  have  been 
cast  against  it  by  the  Jews,  who  continue  to  this 
day  to  throw  stones  at  it  as  they  pass.  Absalom 
was  a  comely  youth,  and  no  doubt  had  a  most 
beautiful  suit  of  hair,  but  he  was  an  undutiful, 
rebellious  son,  and  the  Jews  have  not  forgotten  his 
wicked  rebellion.  Hence  they  cast  stones  at  his 
tomb. 

Coiitinuing  up  the  valley,  we  reach  the  tomb  of 
the  Virgin  Mary,  a  very  large  grotto,  into  whicli 
we  descend  by  an  easy  flight  of  stone  steps.  It  is 
finely  decorated,  and  scores  of  gold  and  silver  lamps 
are  kept  burning  here  continually,  before  and  abov^ 
the  resting-place  of  the  mother  of  our  Saviour. 
The  body  of  the  Virgin's  mother  also  lies  in  this 
grotto. 

A  stone's-throw  from  the  tomb  of  the  Virgin  is 
the  garden  of  Gethsemane,  on  what  may  be  called 
the  first  bench  of  the  Mount  of  Olives.  It  is  en- 
closed with  a  high  wall,  and  occupies  perhaps  an 
acre  of  ground.  We  enter  by  a  low  iron  door,  and 
find  the  garden  well  kept,  being  ornamented  with 
many  pretty  flowers.  There  are  a  dozen  or  more 
olive  trees  in  the  garden  which  bear  marks  of  very 
great  age.  At  the  lower  side  of  the  garden,  in 
a  little  summer-house,  we  all  assemble  and  join  in 
religious  service :  reading  the  Scripture  account  of 
the  sufterings  and  betrayal  in  this  garden,  singing, 
and  prayer.     After  gathering  a  small  bunch  of 


hal's  travels.  291 

jQowers,  we  leave  the  garden,  and  ascend  to  the 
summit  of  the  Mount  of  Olives.  What  a  splendid 
view  we  have  from  here !  We  see  the  entire  city. 
Every  house  is  in  view,  and  as  nearly  every  one  is 
surmounted  with  a  dome,  the  scene  is  very  pleasing. 
We  rest  here  and  gaze  at  the  city  and  its  environs 
for  a  long  time.  Our  Saviour  has  sat  here  many 
times  and  overlooked  his  heloved  city — ay,  and 
wept  over  it  too.  We  open  the  book  and  read  the 
account  of  his  weeping  over  it,  and  of  his  oft  retir- 
ing here  to  pray.  And  now  we  read  of  his  tri- 
umphal ride  upon  the  ass  from  here  into  the  city, 
when  he  entered  the  Temple  and  drove  out  the 
money-changers  and  them  that  bought  and  sold  in 
his  Father's  house.  From  where  we  sit  we  see  the 
"gate  called  Beautiful,"  through  which  he  passccf. 
It  is  walled  up  now,  but  we  see  the  beautiful  double 
arch  in  the  wall.  While  our  party  rest  and  read, 
we  climb  an  olive  tree  (there  are  hundreds  of  them 
still  upon  the  Mount)  and  cut  several  walking-canes, 
which  we  will  carrj-  home  as  souvenirs.  We  get 
half  a  dozen,  which  we  shall  present  to  Rev.  Mr. 

and  others,  if  we  are  fortunate  enough  to  get 

them  home.  We  will  come  to-nio-ht  and  irct  more, 
as  the  keeper  of  the  grounds  is  coming  this  way. 

We  now  go  across  the  hill  and  descend  to  the 
quiet  village  of  Bethany.  It  is  but  a  Sabbath-day's 
journey  (about  two  and  a  half  miles)  from  the  city. 
We  find  the  village  cosily  nestled  in  a  little  glen 
surrounded  by  high  hills,  the  sides  of  which  are 
covered  with  olive,  fig,  apricot,  and  almond  trees. 


292  HAL'S    TRAVELS. 

Many  of  tlie  houses  are  in  ruins,  but  still  there  is  a 
considerable  population.  "We  first  sit  down  on  the 
grass,  in  the  shade,  and  read  in  the  Scriptures  about 
Martha  and  Mary  and  Lazarus,  and  about  the  great 
miracle  wrought  here.  Then  descend  into  the  cave 
which  was  the  tomb  of  Lazarus.  Coming  out,  we 
go  up  the  hill  a  little  way  to  the  ruins  of  an  old  stone 
building  which  is  said  to  be  the  same  in  which  that 
happy  family  lived,  and  where  our  blessed  Saviour 
used  to  retire  and  commune  with  them  as  his  dearly 
beloved  friends.  The  house  of  Simon  the  leper  is 
also  shown,  close  by.  Gathering  a  few  flowers,  we 
retrace  our  steps  towards  the  city,  and  enter  the 
gate  of  St.  Stephen,  by  the  sheep-market.  Here  we 
find  more  lepers.  They  are  about  the  only  beggars 
we  find  iu  Jerusalem.  "We  pass  through  the  city, 
and  emerge  from  the  Damascus  gate  at  the  north, 
and  go  through  a  large  olive-grove  to  the  Tombs  of 
the  Kings — massive  excavations  in  the  rock,  where 
it  is  said  the  shepherd  kings  of  Israel  were  en- 
tombed. A  description  of  the  deep  recesses  and 
windings  of  these  excavations  would  be  profitless. 

Returning  to  the  city  by  the  Bethlehem  gate,  we 
mount  the  wall  and  make  the  circuit  of  the  city,  a 
long  but  interesting  walk. 

Descending  from  the  wall,  we  take  a  look  at  the 
interior  of  the  city.  Half  a  minute's  walk  satisfies 
us  that  Jerusalem  is  a  city  more  pleasant  to  look  at 
from  a  distance  than  to  walk  in.  The  streets  are 
from  eight  to  twelve  feet  wide,  and  in  many  places 
arched   over,  which  renders  them   quite  gloomy. 


ual's   travels.  293 

They  are  substantially  paved,  but  as  no  rubbish 
ever  seems  to  be  removed  from  them,  they  are  not 
so  clean  as  could  be  desired.  The  main  streets, 
and  especially  the  bazaars,  are  densely  crowded  with 
people.  It  is  hard  to  make  way  through  some  of 
them.  We  see  every  variety  of  costume,  and  every 
cast  of  feature,  and  hear  almost  every  language  that 
is  spoken  under  the  sun.  Xo  danger  of  losing  our 
way  in  Jerusalem ;  for  the  streets  cross  each  other 
at  right  angles,  and  there  are  various  landmarks  to 
guide  us.  The  bazaars  are  well  supplied  with 
almost  every  variety  of  goods,  which  look  like  they 
have  been  handled  for  years.  Beads  seem  to  be  the 
principal  article  of  merchandise  in  that  portion  of 
the  city  convenient  to  the  Church  of  the  Holy  Se- 
pulchre ;  nor  are  mother-of-pearl  crucifixes,  and 
other  ornaments,  forgotten.  I  think  several  wagons 
mic-ht  be  loaded  with  these  thins^s. 

But  we  must  not  long  linger  in  Jerusalem  at  this 
time.  However  interesting  the  ground  on  which 
we  walk,  we  must  leave  it;  for  there  are  other 
places  intensely  interesting  that  must  be  seen. 
We  love  to  sojourn  in  the  city  where  the  Lord  of 
the  whole  earth  has  walked  and  talked  and  suffered 
and  died ;  to  walk  over  the  ground  and  gaze  upon 
scenes  once  familiar  to  David  and  Solomon,  and  the 
kings  and  priests  who  succeeded  them ;  where  Peter, 
and  Paul,  and  James,  and  John,  and  the  other  apos- 
tles, have  preached  the  gospel  of  Jesus  Christ ;  to 
linger  about  the  hill  of  Zion  and  Mount  Moriah, 
where  the  ark  of  the  covenant  rested,  and  where 


294  hal's   travels. 

God  himself  was  wont  to  meet  face  to  face  with  his 
peculiar  people.  But  we  must  leave  these  scenes 
for  a  season.  Our  dragoman  tells  us  that  the  horses 
and  all  things  are  now  ready  for  our  departure  for 
Hebron.  We  shall  now  be  dwellers  in  tents  for  a 
few  weeks.  We  are  all  glad  of  it ;  for  there  is  a 
romance  about  tent-life  really  charming,  especially 
at  this  season  of  the  year,  when  the  sky  is  cloudless, 
the  air  balmy,  and  the  whole  face  of  the  earth  co- 
vered with  beautiful  wild  flowers. 

Mrs.  Smith  is  almost  crazy  to  get  under  way. 
Smith  has  loaded  himself  down  with  pistols  and 
swords,  and  swears  he  is  a  match  for  forty  Bedouins ; 
which  gentry  are  said  to  infest  the  region  through 
which  we  travel,  and  sometimes  relieve  travellers 
of  their  extra  change  and  clothing.  He  has  also 
bought  him  a  lance,  to  which  he  has  fastened  the 
American  flag,  the  same  we  had  on  the  jSTile. 

The  horses  are  brought  to  our  hotel  door.  We 
mount  and  issue  forth  from  the  Bethlehem  gate, 
and  file  down  through  the  valley  of  Hinnom,  the 
gallant  Captain  Smith  leading  the  party.  I  wish  I 
could  paint  you  a  picture  of  our  leader,  as  he  now 
appears  at  the  head  of  the  column.  He  looks  vene- 
rable, for  his  gray  beard  is  long  and  flowing.  He 
has  ignored  his  hat,  and  now  wears  an  enormous 
turban  and  tarbouche.  Is  almost  buried  to  his 
waist  in  high-top  boots,  with  huge  spurs  attached 
to  them.  A  red  silk  Damascus  shawl  around  his 
waist,  in  which  are  a  couple  of  long  navy  pistols, 
and  two  more  hung  at  his   saddle-bow;  his  long 


II  A  L  '  S     TRAVELS.  295 

lance  gracefnll}^  couched,  and  the  stars  and  stripes 
gayly  streaming  from  his  head.  And  then  to  see 
how  proudly  the  old  gentleman  sits  upon  his  Arab 
steed — the  picture  is  refreshing.  We  are  all  proud 
of  Smith,  feeling  assured  that,  with  him  to  lead,  we 
shall  have  a  safe  passage  through  all  the  Bedouin 
tribes  in  Syria. 

We  take  the  high  road  to  Hebron,  which,  in  any 
other  country  but  this,  would  not  deserve  the  name 
of  road  at  all.  The  iirst  object  of  interest,  that 
attracts  our  attention  along  the  way  is 

But  perhaps  I  had  better  reserve  the  account  of 
our  excursion  for  another  letter,  which  I  will  write 
when  I  feel  like  it.     I  am  tired  now. 

Yours  truly,  Hal. 


296  hal's  travels. 


LETTER  XXVIII. 

JERUSALEM   TO    HEBRON — THE   JORDAN,    DEAD   SEA, 
JERICHO,    ETC. 

My  last  letter  left  onr  party  winding  up  the  "Hill 
of  Evil  Counsel"  from  the  valley  of  Ilinnom,  having 
just  emerged  from  the  Bethlehem  gate  of  Jerusalem, 
and  taken  the  high-road  to  Hebron.  With  your 
permission,  we  will  now  continue  that  journey.  Our 
tents  and  camp-equipage  have  gone  forward  on  bag- 
gage mules,  and  we  will  amble  on  at  our  leisure. 
Smith  is  riding  proudly  at  our  head,  looking  as 
much  like  a  brigand  chief  as  civilized  man  ever 
looked ;  and,  to  confess  the  truth,  his  followers  (ex- 
cept the  ladies)  look  little  less  suspicious  than  him- 
self. The  only  redeeming  feature  in  the  picture  is 
the  American  flag,  waving  gracefully  from  the  spear- 
head of  our  gallant  and  venerable  leader,  whose 
horse  is  rearing,  pitching,  and  curvating  like  a  tight- 
rigged  ship  on  a  rough  sea.  We  should  like  it  if 
our  friends  could  see  that  horse.  Smith  calls  him 
"Dare-devil,"  and  a  dare-devil  he  is,  and  no  mistake. 
A  "hard"-looking  animal  he  is,  but  "mettle"  to  the 
back-bone.  Has  a  long  and  exceedingly  gaunt  body 
— legs  ditto.     A  slim  neck,  which  inclines  to  bow 


II  A  L  '  S     TRAVELS.  297 

up  instead  of  down,  and  the  bead  attached  to  it  is 
longer  than  a  flour-barrel.  His  ears  point  straight 
up,  and  liis  tail,  almost  innocent  of  hair,  points 
straight  out  behind.  Baskets  could  be  hung  upon 
his  hip-bones.  But  what  an  eye  !  It  is  one  of  the 
most  villainous  eyes  ever  stuck  into  a  horse's  head, 
and  protrudes  so  far  that  3*ou  might  knock  it  olF 
with  a  stick,  and  never  touch  the  head  !  "We  greatly 
admire  this  "Arab  steed,"  and  so  does  Smith,  who 
selected  him  solely  on  account  of  his  villainous  eye. 
The  rest  of  our  horses  were  like  unto  Smith's  in 
appearance,  but  wanting  in  mettle.  They  all  have 
"bottom,"  however,  and  possess  that  quality  pecu- 
liarly necessary  to  horses  in  Palestine — i.  e.,  the 
ability  to  climb  ladders,  stone  walls,  and  to  walk  on 
stilts.  None  but  those  who  have  travelled  over  the 
roads  of  this  country  will  understand  what  this 
means. 

The  morning  is  a  delicious  one.  The  gentle 
spring  sun  is  just  warm  enough  to  make  us  feel 
comfortable.  The  whole  face  of  the  earth  seems  to 
be  covered  with  wild  flowers  of  every  hue  and  color, 
and  we  all  press  forward  with  glad  hearts  and 
buoyant  hopes.  The  natives  stare  at  us  as  we 
clatter  over  the  hard  stone  road,  in  our  unique  cos- 
tumes, but  in  our  hilarity  we  heed  them  not. 

The  first  objectofintcrestthatattractsourattentiou 
in  the  way,  is  a  well  in  the  middle  of  the  road,  called 
the  "Well  of  the  Wise  Men,"  because  there  is  a  tra- 
dition that  the  wise  men  who  came  from  the  East 
to  Bethlehem  to  worship  the  infant  Saviour,  drank 


298  ual's  travels. 

and  rested  here  after  their  conference  with  that 
bloody  villain,  Herod.  One  hour  farther  on,  and 
we  reach  the  tomb  of  Eachel,  the  wife  of  Jacob,  and 
mother  of  Joseph  and  Benjamin.  The  tomb  is  en- 
closed in  a  little  white  stone  building,  and  is  alike 
venerated  by  all  sects — Jews,  Christians,  and  Mos- 
lems. The  account  of  the  death  and  burial  of  Kachel 
in  this  place  is  familiar  to  every  Bible  reader.  It 
is  brief  and  graphic,  and  we  read  it  here  on  the  spot 
with  more  than  ordinary  interest :  "  They  journeyed 
from  Bethel,  and  there  was  but  a  little  way  to  come 
to  Ephrath.  .  .  .  And  Rachel  died,  and  was  buried 
in  the  way  to  Ephrath,  which  is  Bethlehem.  And 
Jacob  set  a  pillar  upon  her  grave ;  and  that  is  the 
pillar  of  Rachel's  grave  unto  this  day."  Lamps  are 
kept  continually  burning  before  this  tomb.  Half 
an  hour  farther  is  Bethlehem,  but  as  we  have  set 
out  for  Hebron,  we  leave  Bethlehem  to  the  left  and 
go  forward.  Two  hours'  ride  brings  us  to  the 
"Pools  of  Solomon."  These  pools  are  so  much 
more  magnificent  than  we  expected  to  find  them, 
that  we  are  struck  with  astonishment.  We  had  not 
expected  to  see  works  of  half  the  magnitude.  But 
then  we  must  remember  that  Solomon  was  a  very 
rich  man,  and  generally  "bored  with  a  big  auger:" 
that  is,  did  up  things  on  a  large  scale.  He  cer- 
tainly did  in  the  way  of  building  pools,  for  here 
they  are  yet  to  speak  for  thcDiselves.  They  are 
mostly  excavated  in  the  solid  rock.  The  largest 
one  is  two  hundred  yards  long,  two  hundred  feet 
wide,  and  fifty  feet  deep !     The  other  two  are  im- 


hal's   travels.  299 

mense,  but  not  quite  so  largo  as  the  first.  They  are 
perhaps  half  full  of  water  now.  Here  King  Solomon 
had  his  country-seat — his  gardens  and  vineyards — 
and  here  too,  no  doubt,  he,  with  his  many  wives 
and  concubines,  used  to  have  good  times  wandering 
through  the  groves  and  gardens,  and  bathing  in 
these  pools. 

Leaving  the  pools,  we  continue  towards  Hebron, 
over  the  ancient  road  which  was  doubtless  trodden 
centuries  upon  centuries  ago  by  Abraham,  Isaac, 
and  Jacob,  and  many  prophets,  priests,  and  kings. 
The  road  is  sadly  out  of  repair  now,  and  as  we  view 
the  great  heaps  of  stones  over  which  our  horses  pick 
their  way,  we  are  tempted  to  doubt  the  possibility 
of  war -chariots  ever  having  passed  this  way.  The 
country  through  which  Ave  pass  is  mostly  barren  and 
desolate,  and  nothing  of  peculiar  interest  attracts 
our  attention  until  we  find  ourselves  entering  the 
vineyards  of  Eshcol.  Here  we  find  cultivation 
carried  to  perfection.  Every  hill-side  (and  there  is 
scarcely  any  thing  else)  is  terraced,  and  every  foot 
of  ground  that  can  bear  a  vine  is  planted,  and  the 
stones  so  arranged  as  to  prevent  the  earth  washing. 
Every  vineyard  has  its  stone  "tower"  in  the  centre, 
and  in  some  places  we  can  see  as  many  as  fifty  of 
these  "towers"  at  one  time.  These  vineyards  were 
once  owned  and  cultivated  by  the  gigantic  sons  of 
Anak,  and  it  was  from  here  that  the  spies  sent  out 
from  the  Israclitish  camp  obtained  the  great  clusters 
which  so  astonished  their  brethren.  Eshcol  would 
be  a  good  place  to  pass  through  in  the  grape  season. 


300  iial's  travels. 

We  now  approach  Hebron.  Its  frowning  stone 
walls  and  towers  loom  up  before  us.  We  do  not 
enter  the  city  now,  but  proceed  to  our  tents,  which 
are  pitched  in  a  pretty  green  common  just  before  the 
town,  hard  by  the  pool  over  which  King  David  hung 
the  assassins  of  Ishbosheth,  as  related  in  2  Samuel 
iv.  12.  This  is  our  first  entree  into  camp,  and  we 
are  hugely  pleased  with  the  prospect.  All  things 
look  neat  and  in  order,  and  we  dismount  and  look 
about  us.  Here  are  four  tents.  The  first  and 
largest  is  given  up  to  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Smith,  Miss 
Kissiah,  and  Miss  Jemima;  the  second  to  Davis, 
Green,  and  Pipkins ;  the  third  to  Jones,  Brown, 
and  myself,  and  the  fourth  is  for  the  dining-saloon 
and  servants.  We  glance  at  our  furniture,  and  are 
astonished  at  the  great  display  made  by  the  few 
packages  brought  on  the  mules.  The  table  is  al- 
ready spread,  and  is  groaning  (tables  always  "groan," 
you  know)  beneath  the  weight  of  a  smoking  dinner 
which  has  been  got  up  with  astonishing  rapidity  by 
Demetri,  our  new  cook.  The  table  is  large  enous^h 
for  ten  persons  to  sit  around  comfortably,  and  yet  it 
can  be  rolled  up  into  a  bundle  so  small  that  you  can 
almost  carry  it  under  your  arm.  Ten  chairs  sur- 
round it,  which  can  be  reduced  in  like  proportion. 
As  to  our  bedsteads,  or  cots,  they  can  be  rolled  up 
in  bundles  little  larger  than  so  many  umbrellas. 
Those  two  comparatively  small  boxes  carry  all  our 
table  and  kitchen  furniture.  One  mule  carries  both, 
besides  the  "kitchen,"  (simply  a  sheet-iron  trough 
with  holes  punched  in  the  bottom,  and  folding  legs,) 


hal's  travels.  301 

and  a  bag  of  charcoal  to  cook  with,  firewood  being 
a  luxury  rarel}-  enjoyed  in  Palestine.  In  short,  our 
household  and  kitchen  furniture  is  complete,  and 
we  are  utterl}^  astonished  to  see  with  what  fiicility 
it  can  be  packed  (including  tents  and  all)  and  trans- 
ported from  place  to  place. 

Now,  although  we  are  somewliat  elated  with  our 
new  mode  of  life — the  luxury  and  novelt}"  of  living 
in  tents — still  there  is  a  slight  sense  of  uneasiness 
in  the  camp  this  evening.  We  are  surrounded 
with  a  horde  of  the  natives,  whose  savage  frowns 
are  any  thing  but  pleasant.  These  Hebronites  are 
a  savage,  fierce  people,  and  hate  "Christian  dogs," 
as  they  call  us,  with  a  perfect  hatred ;  and  we  are 
therefore  on  our  best  behavior.  Smith  bustles 
about,  and  tries  to  appear  unconcerned,  but  he 
frankly  acknowledges  the  corn  to  me  that  they  are 
not  just  the  kind  of  people  with  whom  he  would 
like  a  muss.  Were  they  Egyptians,  or  ordinary 
Arabs,  Smith's  "koorbash"  would  have  played  havoc 
among  them  in  short  order ;  but  they  are  not  Egyp- 
tians nor  ordinary  Arabs,  so  he  lets  them  alone, 
and  wisely,  too.  It  would  be  a  great  relief  to  all  of 
us  if  they  would  leave,  but  we  dare  not  tell  them  so, 
for  fear  of  a  shower  of  stones. 

Hebron  is  perhaps  the  oldest  inhabited  city  in  the 
world.  We  don't  know^  its  age,  but  in  Numbers 
xiii.  22,  we  read  that  it  was  built  "  seven  j^ears  be- 
fore Zoan  in  Egypt."  When  Zoan  was  built  we  do 
not  know,  except  that  it  was  built  seven  years  after 
Hebron.     That  must  have  been  a  long  time  ago,  for 


302  HAL'S    TRAVELS. 

Zoan  has  been  a  lieap  of  ruins  for  centuries.  "We 
care  little,  however,  about  the  age  of  Hebron.  "We 
know  that  Abraham  used  to  live  here,  and  that  his 
bones  are  still  here,  resting  quietly  in  the  cave  of 
Machpelah.  This  "faithful"  man  and  "friend  of 
God"  was  buried  here  more  than  thirty-seven  hun- 
dred 3'ears  ago,  and  during  all  that  time  his  descend- 
ants have  reverenced  the  spot,  and  Christians  and 
Moslems  do  the  same.  The  remains  of  Isaac  and 
Jacob,  Sarah,  Rebecca,  and  Leah,  are  also  buried 
in  this  cave,  "With  the  exception  of  Jerusalem,  no 
place  on  earth  is  more  hallowed  by  high  and  sacred 
associations  than  this  venerable  old  city  of  Hebron. 
Here  the  old  patriarchs  communed  with  God,  and 
received  the  promises  of  the  covenant.  David  once 
lived  here — was  anointed  king,  and  made  this  his 
capital  for  some  seven  or  eight  years.  It  was 
here  in  Hebron  that  Joab  assassinated  Abner. 
His  tomb  is  within  a  stone's-throw  of  our  encamp- 
ment. The" rebellious  Absalom,  whose  tomb  we  saw 
in  the  valley  of  Jehoshaphat,  made  this  his  head- 
quarters during  the  time  of  his  rebellion  against  his 
good  old  father  David. 

Hebron  is  a  much  more  imposing  city  than  we 
expected  to  find  it.  The  houses  are  all  built  of 
large  hewn  stone,  and  look  like  they  might  stand 
for  ever,  for  they  stand  upon  a  rock.  It  contains 
ten  or  twelve  thousand  inhabitants,  all  fierce  Mo- 
hammedans, except  a  few  miserable  Jews,  who  only 
exist  by  suiFerance.  Tliere  are  no  Christians.  In- 
deed, it  is  hardly  safe  for  Christians  to  visit  here,  as 


Hal's  travels.  303 

wc  arc  uow  doino;,  mucli  less  reside  among  these 
bigoted,  fanatical  Moslems.  Visitors  are  fortnnate 
indeed  if  they  get  awaj''  from  here  without  being 
insulted,  if  not  stoned  from  the  heights  above  the 
camping-ground. 

Our  fancy  does  not  lead  us  to  wander  through  the 
streets  of  Hebron  to  any  considerable  extent.  It  is 
not  pleasant  to  be  followed  up  and  hooted  at  by 
crowds  of  yellow-skinned  devils  ;  we  therefore  con- 
tent ourselves  with  a  visit  to  the  mosque  which 
stands  over  the  Cave  of  Machpelah,  and  make  as  near 
an  approach  to  the  bones  of  the  old  patriarchs  and 
their  wives  as  possible — no  Christian  being  allowed 
under  any  pretence  to  enter  the  cave.  We  also  visit 
the  tomb  of  Abner,  and  the  ancient*  pool  before 
alluded  to. 

Having  seen  all  of  Hebron  that  we  desire  to  see, 
we  start  back  towards  Jerusalem  over  the  same  road 
wo  came,  making  a  little  detour  just  after  leaving 
the  city,  to  see  the  last  surviving  oak  in  the  vale  of 
Mamre.  It  was  here  that  old  Father  Abraham  first 
pitched  his  tent,  and  dug  a  well,  which  still  aftbrds 
an  ample  supply  of  excellent  water.  We  drink  of 
it,  and  rest  beneath  the  shade  of  this  broad-spread- 
ing oak,  and  read  in  our  Bibles  about  the  visit  of 
the  angels  to  the  old  patriarch,  when  he  dwelt  per- 
haps just  here  where  we  sit.  The  scene  around  us 
is  one  of  the  most  beautiful  in  Palestine,  the  rugged 
hills  standing  out  in  bold  relief,  each  possessing  a 
distinct  feature  of  its  own,  unlike  the  hills  of  any 
other  country,  while  the  rich  olive-groves  and  vine- 


304  HAL'S    TRAVELS. 

yards  remind  us  the  wliile  that  we  are  not  in  the 
land  of  the  West.  We  feel  that  we  are  upon  holy 
ground.  Every  view  the  eye  rests  upon  was  seen 
as  we  now  see  it  by  Abraham,  Isaac,  and  Jacob,  by 
Samuel,  David,  and  Solomon.  The  cities  they  built 
or  dwelt  in  are  now  heaps  of  ruins,  but  the  features 
of  nature  remain  unchanged — the  mountains,  the 
valleys,  the  fountains,  the  rocks  are  all  here.  Many 
a  time  and  oft  have  these  good  men  of  old  walked 
up  and  down  this  lovel}'-  vale  of  Mamre,  commun- 
ing with  the  great  God  himself,  and  covenanting  to 
serve  him  faithfully.  They,  too,  like  other  men, 
have  wept  before  the  Cave  of  Machpelah. 

But  beautiful  as  is  the  scene,  and  pleasant  as  is 
the  shadow  *of  this  brave  old  oak,  we  must  not 
linger  here.  'No,  the  Vale  of  Mamre,  the  well  and 
oak  where  Abraham  and  righteous  Lot  have  oft 
communed  together,  the  very  ground  where  angels 
have  stood,  and  the  vineyards  of  Eshcol,  must  all 
be  left  behind,  for  we  must  rest  in  Bethlehem  to- 
day. We  cut  a  few  slips  from  the  grape-vines  to 
carry  home  with  us,  and  then  take  the  highway  to- 
wards the  city  of  David.  At  the  Pools  of  Solomon 
we  rest,  and  partake  of  our  noonday  repast.  We 
here  leave  the  Jerusalem  road,  and  strike  off"  to  the 
right,  down  a  beautiful  valley,  filled  with  clusters  of 
olive,  fig,  almond,  and  apricot  trees.  Two  hours' 
ride  brings  us  to  Bethlehem,  Avhose  streets  we  tra- 
verse, feeling  that  every  footfall  is  upon  holy  ground. 
Our  party  enter  the  gates  of  the  city  chanting  that 
good  old  song, 

"The  star,  the  star  of  Bethlehem." 


HAL'S    TRAVELS.  305 

"We  go  first,  of  course,  to  the  "  Church  of  the  Na- 
tivity," whose  sacred  walls  we  enter  with  awe  and 
reverence.  The  story  of  the  Child  of  Bethlehem 
is  known  to  the  world.  We  enter  the  grotto,  and 
stand  before  the  very  place  where  the  Saviour  was 
born.  Near  by  is  the  manger  in  which  he  was 
laid.  We  open  our  Bibles  and  read  the  interest- 
ing story,  which  seems  now  more  interesting  than 
ever  before.  We  read  about  the  wise  men  coming 
in  and  worshipping  the  child,  and  presenting  their 
costly  gifts  ;  and  also  about  the  shepherds  coming 
in  from  the  field,  after  the  light  had  shone  about 
them,  and  the  angel,  with  a  multitude  of  the  hea- 
venly host,  had  appeared  unto  them,  praising  God  and 
saying,  "  Glory  to  God  in  the  highest,  and  on  earth 
peace,  good-will  toward  men."  These  shepherds 
knew  that  a  Prince  and  Saviour  was  born  into  the 
world,  and  "  they  returned  glorifying  and  praising 
God  for  all  things  that  they  had  heard  and  seen." 
This  place  was  a  stable  then,  and  a  gloomy  place, 
no  doubt ;  but  Joseph  and  Mary  were  thrust  here 
"  because  there  was  no  room  for  them  in  the  inn." 
This  grotto  with  its  costly  trappings,  and  the  other 
eacred  places  about  this  great  old  church,  have  been 
so  often  described  that  we  deem  it  unnecessary  to 
do  more  than  to  look  on  and  try  to  realize  the  fact 
that  we  are  actually  in  the  very  place  where  Jesus 
was  born. 

Bethlehem,  although  an  imposing  little  city,  as 
seen  from  a  distance,  is  not  a  place  in  which  one 
desires  to  tarry  long.     When  we   have  seen  the 


306  iial's    travels. 

''Church  of  the  Nativity,"  and  its  appendages,  we 
depart  toward  Jericho,  the  Jordan,  and  the  Dead 
Sea,  not  forgetting  to  take  with  us  a  guard  of  Be- 
douins— thieves  whom  we  hire  to  protect  us  from 
other  thieves ;  for  there  is  nothing  more  certain 
than  that,  if  a  man  undertakes  to  go  down  to 
Jericho  without  an  escort,  he  will  fall  among  thieves, 
and  be  left  wounded  and  naked  on  the  way.  The 
country  through  which  we  pass  is  indescribable. 
The  hills  are  utterly  barren,  and  look  as  though  a 
scathing  lire  had  just  passed  over  them,  consuming 
every  green  or  combustible  thing.  Smith  says  these 
hills  seem  to  have  been  dropped  down  at  random, 
and  then  stirred  up.  If  they  looked  in  old  times 
as  now,  I  wonder  much  that  Moses  did  not  turn 
away  with  disgust  when  he  viewed  them  from 
Mount  Pisgah.  To  be  gathered  to  his  fathers  just 
at  that  time,  should  have  been  matter  of  congratu- 
lation, rather  than  regret,  with  the  great  leader  of 
Israel.  But  they  possibly  may  have  been  fruitful 
then,  or  he  may  have  had  a  spiritual  view  of  the 
goodly  country  beyond  these  hills. 

But  we  must  hasten  on,  or  this  letter  will  be  too 
long,  if  it  is  not  already  verging  that  way.  It  is 
hardly  worth  the  time  and  space  to  record  the  con- 
fusion, not  to  say  consternation,  into  which  our 
party  is  thrown  by  our  foremost  escort,  who  comes 
galloping  back  at  full  speed,  with  the  startling  in- 
formation that  a  large  force  of  robbers  is  in  a  ra- 
vine just  ahead,  waiting  for  us.  It  is  now  that  our 
gallant  Smith  shows  his  "grit."     He  takes  com- 


hal's    travels.  307 

maud  in  earnest,  forms  us  into  compact  order,  and 
takes  his  position  at  the  head.  Examines  his  pis- 
tols, couches  his  lance,  and,  looking  as  tierce  as  a 
thunder-cloud,  puts  "Dare-devil"  into  a  gallop,  and 
cries,  "Come  on,  boj's!"  We  follow,  each  man 
ready  witli  his  revolver,  keeping  a  sharp  lookout. 
We  gallop  on,  and  on,  and  on,  and  finally  reach  the 
margin  of  the  Dead  Sea,  without  meeting  with  the 
eneni}',  or  even  seeing  his  track.  We  now  know 
that  the  alarm  was  a  mere  trick  of  our  guard,  to  see 
if  we  were  spunky.  Had  we  shown  the  "  white 
feather,"  they  w^ould  have  robbed  us  themselves. 
All  honor  to  Smith  for  his  gallant  bearing  on  the 
trying  occasion. 

We  arrive  at  the  shores  of  the  Dead  Sea.  Like 
everybody  else  who  comes  here,  we  pull  off  our 
clothes  and  "pitch  in,"  and,  like  everybody  else, 
we  of  course  find  the  water  intensely  salt  and  tre- 
mendously buoyant.  We  lie  on  the  surface,  and 
float  without  an  effort.  Come  out,  and  by  the  time 
we  get  our  clothes  on,  are  encrusted  with  a  thin 
layer  of  salt.  Fill  our  bottles  with  water,  pick 
up  a  few  handsome  pebbles,  mount  our  horses,  and 
make  tracks  for  the  Jordan,  to  Avash  the  salt  oft'  our 
bodies,  which  begins  to  sting  and  prickle  rather 
uncomfortably. 

An  hour's  ride  across  the  plain  brings  us  to  the 
banks  of  the  Jordan,  whose  rushing  waters  come 
down  like  a  mill-race.  Before  us,  beyond  the  river, 
the  mountains  of  Moab  loom  up,  dark  and  frown- 
ing.    We  see  the  peaks  of  Pisgah,  and  also  Mount 


308  HAL'S     TRAVELS. 

Gilead.  These  mountaiiis  and  this  river  we  have 
read  of  from  onr  youth  up,  and  we  now  look  upon 
them  with  gladness.  We  are  soon  stripped  and  in 
the  cooling  waters,  splaghing  and  diving  in  the 
most  hilarious  manner ;  for  it  is  a  great  relief  to 
get  the  salt  washed  off.  After  bathing  to  our 
hearts'  content,  we  come  out  and  sing  that  good 
old  song, 

"On  Jordan's  stormy  banks  I  stand,"  etc., 

which  certainly  are  not  "stormy"  now.  Eat  our 
lunch,  and,  under  the  shade  of  the  trees  upon  the 
bank,  we  read  in  our  Bibles  about  "those  days" 
when  John  came  preaching  and  baptizing,  perhaps 
in  this  very  place.  It  Avas  here  that  the  great 
multitudes  flocked  to  hear  the  preaching  of  John  ; 
and  it  was  here,  or  hereabouts,  that  the  Saviour 
himself  was  baptized,  when  the  Spirit  of  God 
descended  upon  and  proclaimed  him  the  Son  of  the 
Almighty.  And  it  was  in  this  immediate  neighbor- 
hood that  Joshua  led  the  conquering  hosts  of  Israel 
over  into  the  promised  land. 

But  evening  approaches,  and  we  must  needs  sleep 
at  Jericho  to-night,  and  that  is  two  hours  away ;  a 
very  pleasant  ride,  however,  across  the  level  plain. 
Our  ride  is  enlivened,  too,  by  a  tilting  match  be- 
tween Smith  and  Brown,  who  seize  this  first  oppor- 
tunity (it  is  the  first  level  ground  we  have  passed 
over)  to  test  the  real  mettle  and  speed  of  their 
charges.  They  perform  their  parts  to  admiration, 
both  horses  and  riders,  until  toward  the  close  of  the 


nAL'S     TRAVELS.  309 

fun,  when  Smith  is  thrown  at  least  twenty  feet  into 
the  midst  of  a  patch  of  thorn-bushes ;  from  which 
we  extricate  the  old  gentleman  with  no  little  diffi- 
culty. He  is  wounded  and  bleeding,  and  will  bear 
the  marks  of  the  thorns  longer  than  his  sojourn  in 
Palestine.  His  spear-head  is  broken  off,  but  our 
dragoman  repairs  the  damage  soon  after  we  get  into 
camp. 

Jericho  we  find  a  miserable  village,  filled  with 
the  poorest  kind  of  Arabs.  Even  the  traces  of  the 
old  walls  which  fell  down  at  the  blowing  of  the 
rams'  horns  are  gone.  The  glory  of  Jericho  has 
long  since  departed,  and  its  palaces  are  heaps  of 
ruins,  outside  the  village.  Our  tents  are  pitched  in 
a  beautiful  situation  on  the  banks  of  the  brook 
Cherith,  which  flows  from  the  fountain  of  Elisha — 
the  same  fountain  whose  waters  were  once  bitter, 
but  were  healed  and  made  sweet  by  that  prophet. 
He  healed  them  by  putting  in  a  cruse  of  salt,  and 
they  remain  healed  nnto  this  day.  There  are  re- 
mains of  an  old  house  here,  which  tradition  says  is 
the  house  of  Zaccheus,  where  our  Saviour  stopped 
when  in  Jericho.  The  tree  that  Zaccheus  climbed 
is  not  to  be  seen.  Jesus  was  in  Jericho  when  word 
was  brought  him  that  his  friend  Lazarus  was  sick 
at  Bethany.  "We  leave  our  encampment  here,  and 
follow  the  same  road  which  our  Saviour  travelled, 
when  going  up  to  Bethany  to  raise  Lazarus  from 
the  dead.  About  half-way  to  Jerusalem  we  pass  by 
the  ruins  of  a  large  stone  building,  said  to  have 
been  once  an  inn,  possibly  the  same  in  which  the 


310  HAL'S     TRAVELS. 

Samaritan  lodged  tlie  poor  fellow  who  fell  among 
thieves.  The  road  all  the  way  to  Bethany  is  despi- 
cable, and  the  country  most  of  the  way  utterly  bar- 
ren, and  encumbered  with  large  rocks.  Our  horses 
know  their  business,  however,  and  take  us  safely 
through.  Smith  says  he  don't  believe  there  is  a  more 
truthful  passage  in  Scripture  than  that  which  says, 

"Jordan  is  a  hard  road  to  travel ;" 

and  we  all  agree  with  Smith ;  for  a  worse  road  is 
not  to  be  found. 

We  pass  through  Bethany — over  a  shoulder  of 
the  Mount  of  Olives — through  the  valley  of  Jehosh- 
aphat,  and  again  enter  the  walls  of  Jerusalem, 
where  we  shall  remain  a  few  days,  and  then  proceed 
on  our  tour  in  the  Korth  of  Palestine  and  Syria. 
Adieu.  Hal. 


ual's   travels.  311 


LETTER   XXIX. 

JERUSALEM     TO     TIBERIAS. 

Inasmuch  as  you  accompanied  our  party  on  a 
tour  from  Jerusalem  to  Hebron,  the  Dead  Sea,  the 
Jordan,  Jericho,  and  back  to  Jerusalem,  it  is  but 
right  and  proper  that  you  continue  with  us  during 
the  rest  of  our  wanderings  in  the  Holy  Land. 
Therefore,  if  you  will  consent  to  go,  you  shall  see 
what  you  shall  see. 

Great  preparations  have  been  made  for  our  depart- 
ure to  the  Il^orth.  Smith  has  been  the  main  spirit 
in  fitting  out  the  expedition,  and  has  thereby 
brought  the  rest  of  us  under  renewed  obligations  to 
him.  I  do  not  know  how  we  should  get  along 
without  Smith,  for  he  is  certainly  an  "institution," 
and  the  most  active  one  I  ever  knew.  He  attends 
to  every  thing — dragoman,  servants,  and  horses — 
and  when  things  don't  go  to  suit  him,  he  swears 
like  a  trooper,  in  Arabic — for  he  has  picked  up  at 
least  twenty  words  of  the  language,  which  he  uses 
upon  all  occasions — especially  when  in  a  passion, 
and  that  is  more  than  half  the  time.  (Smith  says 
it  is  wonderful  how  soon  a  man  picks  up  the  Ian- 
guage  of  a  country.)     Through  his  influence  we 


312  hal's   travels. 

have  almost  doubled  tlie  number  of  our  arms,  for 
there  are  frightful  rumors  afloat  about  the  ferocious- 
ness of  the  Bedouin  Arabs  in  the  mountains ;  and 
it  is  said  that  the  plains  of  Sharon  and  Esdraelon 
swarm  with  banditti.  But  our  party  is  large,  and 
we  stand  in  but  little  fear  of  the  savage  descendants 
of  Ishmael.  With  our  bold  captain  to  lead,  we 
feel  as  if  we  could  ride  through  a  troop  of  them. 

But  we  must  be  under  way.  Pleasant  as  it  is  to 
linger  about  Jerusalem,  we  can  stay  no  longer. 
The  jingle  of  the  bells  of  the  baggage  mules  re- 
minds us  that  our  tents  will  be  pitched  at  Bethel 
to-night,  and  to  reach  them  we  must  be  stirring. 
While  our  horses  are  being  got  ready,  we  watch 
those  patient  mules  filing  away  under  their  heavy 
burdens,  and  pity  them.  There  are  Mrs.  Smith's 
two  great  heavy  trunks  strapped  across  the  back  of 
one  little  animal,  so  small  that  it  could  be  put 
inside  of  either  one  of  them,  and  have  ample  stable- 
room.  It  is  astonishing  to  see  the  amount  of  bag- 
gage carried  by  a  fashionable  woman.  One-tenth 
part  of  the  contents  of  these  trunks  would  be  suffi- 
cient for  the  tour  of  Palestine,  and  yet  the  fas- 
tidious Mrs.  S.  insists  upon  canying  it  all.  I  fear 
it  will  be  a  tempting  invitation  to  the  Bedouins 
to  fall  upon  us.  Miss  Kissiah  Jones  is  the  most 
sensible  woman  I  have  seen  travelling  in  the  East. 
She  is  content  to  carry  a  small  valise,  in  which  she 
carries  but  one  extra  dress.  She  has  worn  that  old 
brown  travelling-dress  in  which  she  now  appears, 
until  it  seems  to  be  a  part  and  parcel  of  herself. 


hal's   travels.  313 

It  is  woefully  faded  under  the  influence  of  the  pelt- 
ing African  sun,  and  is  becoming  beautifully  fringed 
about  the  bottom  of  the  skirt;  but  still,  Kissiah, 
with  her  beaming  face,  looks  well  even  in  it.  She 
wears  her  other  dre^s  only  on  Sundays.  (It  is  a 
black  silk.)  She  says  she  is  determined  to  stick  to 
the  "  old  brown"  until  the  end  of  the  journey — and 
she  is  right. 

But  here  are  our  horses.  Let  us  mount  and  be 
off.  Smith  is  first  in  the  saddle,  and  of  course  leads 
the  way.  Look  at  him  as  he  rides  oif;  and  see 
with  what  pride  and  dignity  old  "Dare-devil"  walks 
awa}',  with  head  and  tail  up,  evidently  proud  of  his 
master.  A  prouder  horse  and  rider  have  never 
sallied  forth  from  the  Damascus  gate  since  the  days 
of  Saul  of  Tarsus,  who  emerged  from  the  same 
portal  about  eighteen  hundred  years  ago,  breathing 
out  curses  upon  Christians,  while  Smith  goes  forth 
breathing  out  Arabic  curses  upon  the  head  of  our 
dragoman,  who  is  reeling  under  the  influence  of  a 
quart  of  mean  brandy;  for  be  it  known,  that  Ibra- 
hcem,  our  Syrian  dragoman,  is  no  Mohammedan, 
but  a  Christian,  and  is  therefore  privileged  to  in- 
dulge in  villainous  drinks.  The  order  of  Good 
Templars  has  not  j-et  penetrated  Jerusalem.  Ach- 
mct,  our  dragoman  on  the  l!^ile,  never  drinks,  for 
he  is  a  strict  Moslem. 

We  arc  now  fairly  out  on  the  Damascus  road, 
pacing  along  in  single  file,  for  the  road  is  too  narrow 
for  two  to  ride  abreast.  It  is  only  a  camel  road, 
for  there  are  no  wheeled  carriages  in  this  country — 


314  hal's   travels. 

not  even  a  wheelbarrow.  The  only  thing  I  have 
seen  on  wheels  is  a  cannon  on  the  Tower  of  Hippi- 
cus  in  Jerusalem.  Our  road,  although  narrow  and 
very  rough,  is  a  great  thoroughfare,  as  we  can  see 
by  the  long  trains  of  camels  we  meet.  They  are 
mostly  laden  with  goods  from  Damascus. 

Here  we  leave  the  Tomb  of  Helena  on  the  right, 
cross  the  upper  end  of  the  Kidron,  and  ascend  the 
hill  of  Scopus.  And  here  we  take  our  farewell 
glance  at  Jerusalem — its  domes,  and  minarets,  and 
gray  walls,  and  the  mountains  that  compass  it 
around,  with  Olivet  at  their  head.  We  take  a  long- 
lingering  look  back  at  the  sacred  spot,  and  only 
turn  away  when  the  picture  grows  dim  and  indis- 
tinct through  the  quivering  tear-drop.  Jerusalem 
is  enshrined  in  our  affections,  and  was  even  before 
we  saw  it.  "We  can  almost  adopt  the  plaintive,  pas- 
sionate language  of  the  captive  Israelite  by  the 
waters  of  Babylon :  "  If  I  forget  thee,  0  Jerusalem, 
let  my  right  hand  forget  her  cunning.  If  I  do  not 
remember  thee,  let  my  tongue  cleave  to  the  roof  of 
my  mouth." 

Here  on  our  right,  on  the  top  of  the  hill,  is  where 
stood  the  ancient  city  of  ISTob,  and  just  over  there  is 
the  site  of  Gibeah.  In  this  little  valley  between  is 
where  the  interview  between  Jonathan  and  David 
took  place.  That  large  rock  we  see  peering  above 
ground  may  have  been  the  rock  "Ezel,"  behind 
which  David  lay  concealed.  We  sit  doAvn  here  and 
read  1  Sam.  xx.,  xxi.,  and  xxii.,  and  learn  therefrom 
that  tragical  events  have  occurred  here  and  here- 


iial's   travels.  315 

abouts.  Wc  uow  go  over  to  Gibeali,  on  tlie  oppo- 
site hill.  From  the  summit  we  have  an  intensely 
interesting  view.  We  see  away  down  into  the 
valley  of  the  Jordan,  and  the  purple-tinted  moun- 
tains of  Moab  beyond.  On  the  south  we  get  a 
peep  at  some  of  the  buildings  on  Blount  Zion.  On 
the  west  we  see  the  tomb  of  the  prophet  Samuel, 
over  which  stands  a  mosque.  On  the  north  is  a 
picturesque  village — Ramah,  of  Benjamin.  The 
sites  of  Anathoth,  Geba,  and  Michmash,  are  visible 
from  this  point. 

On  this  ground  where  we  now  stand  once  stood 
the  city  of  Gibeah.  Saul,  the  first  King  of  Israel, 
lived  here ;  and  here  occurred  that  awful  tragedy 
which  well-nigh  annihilated  the  tribe  of  Benjamin. 
"We  remember  the  horrible  story  of  the  Levite  and 
his  concubine ;  and  here,  on  the  spot,  we  read  the 
nineteenth,  twentieth,  and  twenty-first  chapters  of 
the  book  of  Judges.  Here,  too,  we  read,  in  2  Sam. 
xxi.,  of  the  hanging  of  the  seven  descendants  of 
Saul,  and  of  the  maternal  tenderness  of  the  bereaved 
mother,  Rizpah. 

A  little  farther  on  we  pass  the  village  of  Ramah, 
of  Benjamin,  and  notice  nothing  else  of  interest 
until  reaching  Bethel.  Here  we  read  the  story  of 
Jacob's  slumber  and  dream,  etc.  Here  the  country 
begins  to  grow  better,  and  olive-groves,  vineyards, 
and  fig-orchards  now  begin  to  take  the  place  of  that 
bleak,  barren  sterility  through  which  we  have  been 
coming  ever  since  leaving  Jerusalem.  AVild  tiowcrs 
cover  the  ground,  and  we  pass  in  sight  of  some 


316  HAL'S     TRAVELS. 

pretty  villages  perched  upon  the  tall  hills.  "We  have 
now  left  the  territory  of  Benjamin,  and  entered  that 
of  Ephraim,  and  the  fertility  around  us  reminds  us 
that  he  was  hlessed  with  "  the  precious  fruits  hrought 
forth  by  the  sun,  .  .  .  and  the  precious  things 
of  the  lasting  hills." 

Now  we  approach  a  dark  and  narrow  defile  be- 
tween two  high  mountains.  It  has  a  startling  name, 
and  is  the  dread  of  faint-hearted  travellers.  It  is 
called  the  "Robbers'  Glen."  Scarcely  a  season 
passes  that  murderous  deeds  are  not  committed 
here.  Before  entering  it  we  look  well  to  our  pistols 
and  ride  as  close  together  as  possible.  Smith  un- 
furls his  flag  and  takes  the  lead  with  as  much  pride 
as  Don  Quixote  ever  rode  forward  to  attack  an  au- 
dacious windmill.  "Dare-devil"  seems  to  snuff  the 
battle  afar  off,  and  enters  the  gorge  with  as  little 
trepidation  as  his  bold  rider.  See  the  old  gentle- 
man as  he  rises  in  his  stirrups  and  presses  forward ! 
Bold  indeed  will  be  the  brigand  who  hurls  a  lance 
at  that  figure.  A  whole  troop  may  well  pause  and 
consider  before  attacking  our  brave  captain,  for  his 
arms  are  numerous  and  in  good  order — and  Smith 
is  a  man  who  will  not  hesitate  to  use  them.  Besides 
his  long,  keen  lance,  he  carries  two  of  Colt's  repeat- 
ers at  his  saddle-bow,  two  "volcanic  repeaters"  in 
his  belt,  and  a  double-barrel  gun  strapped  to  his 
back.  So  you  see  he  is  capable  of  firing  thirty  shots, 
besides  doing  immense  execution  with  his  shining 
spear.  And  then,  too,  the  appearance  of  the  man 
will  do  much  towards  gaining  us  a  victory.     His 


hal's   travels.  317 

tall  figure,  flowing  gray  beard,  huge  turban,  red 
shirt,  brilliant  sash,  high  red-top  boots,  and  ponder- 
ous spurs — these  things  are  enough  to  strike  terror 
into  the  ranks  of  the  most  daring  banditti.  We  all 
glory  in  Smith,  and  well  w^e  may,  for  he  is  a  jewel. 

But  we  pass  the  "Eobbers'  Glen,"  and  see 
"nary"  robber.  The  country  still  improves,  and 
our  ride  is  most  charming.  The  terraced  hills  are 
so  quaint,  the  winding  valleys  so  picturesque,  the 
wild  flowers  so  brilliant  and  so  plentiful,  the  som- 
bre foliage  of  the  olive,  the  deep  green  of  the  fig, 
and  briirht  ffreen  of  the  s-rowins:  wheat  on  the  ter- 
races,  all  give  such  exquisite  hues  to  the  landscape ! 
Add  to  this  the  gray  ruins  perched  upon  the  hill- 
tops, and  the  peasants  in  their  gay  dresses,  red  and 
green  and  white,  and  the  strings  of  mules  and  don- 
keys and  camels,  defiling  along  the  narrow  paths, 
their  bells  awaking  the  echoes  ;  and  the  Arab  with 
his  long  spear,  or  old  brass-bound,  flint-lock  mus- 
ket; and  the  shepherd  leading  his  goats  along  the 
mountain-side,  or  grouped  with  them  around  a  foun- 
tain ;  and  then — the  oddest  figure  of  them  all — the 
traveller  from  the  far-west,  with  his  red  face  and 
nondescript  trappings  !  These  are  the  scenes  and 
pictures  around  us. 

But  we  hasten  on  to  Shiloh — a  most  interesting 
spot.  We  stop  under  the  shade  of  this  huge  oak, 
(the  only  tree  to  be  seen,)  and  read  some  portions 
of  Scripture  relating  to  Shiloh.  We  find  that  here 
the  Tabernacle  of  the  Lord  was  first  permanently 
set  up  iu  Canaan ;  and  here  the  Israelites  assem- 


318  hal's  travels. 

bled  to  receive  eacli  his  portion  of  the  promised 
land.  It  was  to  this  place  Samuel,  when  a  child, 
was  brought  and  dedicated  to  the  Lord.  There  was 
a  great  annual  feast  held  in  Shiloli  in  honor  of  the 
ark,  at  which  the  village  maidens  were  wont  to 
dance  ;  they  probably  did  up  their  dancing  in  this 
little  valley  just  below  us.  It  was  on  one  of  these 
festive  occasions  that  the  remnant  of  the  Benjamin- 
ites  concealed  themselves  in  the  vine3'ards  near  by, 
and  suddenly  rushing  upon  the  unconscious  dam- 
sels, carried  off  two  hundred  of  them.  It  is  to  be 
hoped  they  got  the  old  maids.  The  glory  of  Shiloh 
departed  with  the  capture  of  the  ark,  and  it  is  now 
but  a  heap  of  ruins.  We  see  a  few  swarthy,  thiev- 
ish-looking rascals  prowling  around  while  we  read, 
but  either  the  size  of  our  party,  or  the  formidable 
appearance  of  Smith,  keeps  them  at  a  distance. 
They  would  no  doubt  like  to  finger  our  cash. 

Leaving  Shiloh,  we  soon  enter  a  rich  and  most 
beautiful  valley.  The  country  has  been  improving 
ever  since  we  entered  the  domains  of  Ephraim,  and 
there  now  seems  but  little  room  for  further  improve- 
ment. Such  fertile  districts  are  unknown  in  Judah 
or  Benjamin.  Every  step  we  advance  proves  to  us 
that  Ephraim  was  indeed  blessed  with  the  "  chief 
things  of  the  ancient  mountains."  The  first  high 
hill  we  ascend  after  leaving  this  valley  reveals  a  most 
glorious  view.  Away  over  yonder  we  see  on  a  very 
high  point  a  little  white  building  of  some  kind. 
That  is  the  landmark  of  Mount  Gerizira,  and  marks 
the  spot  where  the  Samaritan  Temple  once  stood. 


hal's  travels.  319 

Beyond  it  we  see  the  point  of  Mount  Ebal.  Be- 
tween the  two  lies  the  valley  and  city  of  Shechem, 
or  Sychar.  And  far,  far  away  on  the  northern  hori- 
zon we  discern  a  peaked  cone  tipped  with  snow; 
that  is  Ilernion ! 

Two  or  three  hours'  riding  brings  us  to  Jacob's 
"Well,  just  at  the  entrance  of  the  valley  of  Shechem, 
and  near  the  base  of  Gerizini.  Here  the  Saviour 
rested  at  noonday,  wearied  no  doubt  with  the  long 
walk  up  the  hot  plain,  having  come,  like  ourselves, 
from  Jerusalem.  There  is  but  little  to  be  seen  at 
this  well,  for  it  is  almost  filled  up,  but  we  stop  and 
read  the  story  of  that  strange  interview  between  our 
Lord  and  the  Samaritan  woman.  The  little  white 
enclosure  we  see  near  by  is  Joseph's  tomb.  His 
body  was  brought  up  from  Egypt,  and  buried  in  this 
place.  Half  an  hour's  ride  up  the  valley  brings  us 
to  Shechem,  situated  among  the  finest  scenery  in 
Palestine,  and  one  of  the  most  beautiful  sites  for  a 
city  from  Dan  to  Beersheba.  It  is  in  a  narrow  val- 
ley, with  the  steep  mountains  of  Ebal  and  Gerizim 
towering  up  on  either  side.  Shechem  has  a  popu- 
lation of  about  eiglit  or  ten  thousand,  the  most  vil- 
lainous set  of  people  we  have  seen  since  leaving 
Hebron.  They  take  pride  in  hating  Christians,  and 
we  must  be  particular  not  to  offend  them,  or  we 
may  get  up  an  unpleasant  affair.  We  go  into  the 
synagogue  of  the  Samaritans,  (there  are  still  a  few 
here,)  and  arc  shown  a  manuscript  copy  of  the  law, 
which  the  high-priest  tells  us  is  three  thousand 
five  hundred  years  old. 


820  hal's    travels. 

It  was  in  Shecliem  that  Abraham  first  pitched  his 
tent  in  Canaan ;  Jacob  also  settled  here,  and  per- 
haps lived  near  ^yhe^e  he  dug  his  well.  He  bought 
that  "parcel  of  a  field"  where  his  well  is  from 
Hamor,  Shechem's  father,  and  there  was  buried  his 
favorite  son  Joseph.  After  removing  from  Shechem 
down  to  Hebron,  Jacob  still  retained  his  plantation 
here,  and  it  was  to  his  fields  here  that  he  sent 
Joseph  in  quest  of  his  brethren,  to  see  if  "  it  was 
well  with  them  and  well  with  their  flocks."  They 
had  removed  to  Dothan,  twelve  miles  farther.  The 
little  fellow  in  his  "coat  of  many  colors"  followed 
them  np  with  the  message  of  his  good  old  father, 
and  they  sold  him  to  the  Ishmaelites. 

As  this  was  the  place  where  the  patriarchs  first 
settled  in  Canaan,  so  it  was,  many  hundred  years 
later,  the  place  where  their  descendants  gathered 
after  coming  np  out  of  Egypt,  and  here,  on  Mount 
Gerizim  and  Mount  Ebal,  the  blessing  and  cursing 
took  place  that  we  read  about  in  Deuteronomy, 
xxvii.  and  xxviii.  In  different  parts  of  the  Scrip- 
tures we  find  that  many  highly  interesting  and 
important  events  occurred  here  in  old  times,  but 
w^e  will  read  them  at  our  leisure,  when  we  have 
more  time.  Those  villainous  Shechemites  who  eye 
us  so  closely  would  perhaps  rather  see  us  move  on. 

The  next  place  of  importance  at  which  we  halt  is 
Samaria,  once  a  great  and  royal  city,  but  now  only 
a  village.  "Within  the  walls  of  an  old  ruined  church 
is  said  to  be  the  tomb  of  John  the  Baptist.  From 
the  commanding  position,  and  the  numerous  evi- 


HAL'S     TRAVELS.  321 

dences  of  fine  arcliitecturc,  Samaria  must  have  been 
a  most  beautiful  city.  None  of  the  ancient  build- 
ings are  standing,  but  the  great  hewn  stones  and 
the  multitude  of  columns  show  that  it  was  superior, 
in  beauty  at  least,  to  any  thing  we  have  before  seen 
in  Palestine.  There  are  hundreds  of  columns  still 
standing,  and  hundreds  more  lying  prostrate,  scat- 
tered over  a  vast  extent  of  ground.  In  one  place, 
on  a  beautiful  terrace  along  the  hill-side,  stands  a 
row  of  columns  near  three-quarters  of  a  mile  in 
length.  There  was  once  a  double  row  of  them  tifty 
feet  apart,  but  nearly  all  of  one  of  the  rows  have 
been  thrown  down,  and  have  rolled  down  the 
hill.  In  many  other  places  columns  are  standing 
in  rows  and  squares.  Vineyards  and  olive-groves 
now  cover  the  grounds,  and  magnificent  specimens 
of  carved  stones  lie  scattered  about  among  them, 
from  the  top  of  the  hill  even  down  into  the  valley. 
The  origin  of  this  city  is  told  with  simplicity  and 
clearness,  in  1  Kings  xvi.  23,  24.  Its  destruction 
was  foretold  by  Micah ;  and,  as  we  stand  on  the 
hill  and  look  on  these  columns  shooting  up  from 
clustering  vines  and  green  wheat,  and  the  great 
heaps  among  the  olive  trees  in  the  valley  below,  Ave 
read  with  thrilling  interest  the  striking  and  fearful 
prediction  of  that  prophet,  "  I  will  make  Samaria 
as  an  heap  of  the  field,  and  as  plantings  of  a  vine- 
yard ;  and  I  will  pour  down  the  stones  thereof  into 
the  valley,  and  I  will  discover  the  foundations  there- 
of." This  prophecy  is  fulfilled  to  the  very  letter. 
The  cause  of  this  destruction  we  learn  from  Uosea 
11 


322  hal's  travels. 

xiii.  IG :  "Samaria  shall  become  desolate,  for  she 
hath  rebelled  against  her  God." 

Leaving  Samaria,  we  traverse  a  most  picturesque 
and  highly  cultivated  section  of  country.  A  ride 
of  six  miles  brings  us  to  one  of  the  richest  and 
most  beautiful  little  plains  we  have  seen.  It  is 
Dothan.  Here  is  where  Joseph  found  his  brethren 
with  their  flocks  the  day  they  sold  him.  Elisha  the 
prophet  once  lived  here. 

A  few  hours'  ride,  and  our  hearts  are  rejoiced  as 
we  enter  that  celebrated  and  extensive  plain  of  Es- 
draelon.  It  is  extensive,  rich,  and  beautiful,  and  is 
drained  by  the  river  Kishon.  This  has  been  the 
great  battle-field  of  Palestine.  The  names  of  the 
mountains  which  surround  this  plain  are  familiar  to 
every  one  who  reads  the  Bible — and  the  towns  are 
also  known.  Upon  entering  the  plain,  we  pass 
through  Jezreel,  once  the  royal  city  where  Ahab 
built  his  palace.  We  stop  and  open  our  Bibles,  and 
in  the  twenty-first  chapter  of  First  Kings  read  the 
story  of  poor  j^aboth  and  his  vinej-ard,  and  the 
cruelty  of  the  crafty  Jezebel.  We  are  now  at  the 
base  of  Mount  Gilboa,  where  Saul  and  Jonathan 
fell.  Tabor  and  Little  Hermon  are  in  plain  view. 
We  pass  through  the  towns  of  Shunem,  N'ain,  and 
Endor.  In  fact,  every  village,  hill,  and  valley  we 
see  in  this  section,  possesses  scriptural  interest. 
There  have  been  innumerable  battles  fought  and 
rivers  of  blood  shed  just  where  we  now  are.  Here 
the  Israelites  have  fought  with  the  Midianites,  the 
Amalekites,  the  Philistines,  the  Syrians,  and  all  the 


hal's  travels.  823 

Canaanitish  tribes,  time  and  again.  Here,  too, 
many  of  the  prophets  lived.  We  pause  in  Nain, 
and  read  the  touching  story  of  the  raising  from  the 
dead  of  the  widow's  son  by  our  Lord.  In  En  dor 
we  read  of  Saul's  interview  with  the  witch,  when 
she  called  up  the  Prophet  SamueL 

In  the  distance,  away  to  the  left,  we  see  the  blue  sum- 
mit of  Mount  Carmel,  and  straight  ahead,  away  across 
the  plain,  rises  Tabor,  a  tall  single  cone  standing  all 
alone.  We  press  forward  to  the  latter,  for  we  must 
camp  there  to-night.  As  we  cross  the  rich  plain, 
we  are  amazed  to  see  what  a  small  proportion  of  it 
is  cultivated.  But  then  we  must  remember  that  , 
there  is  no  encouragement  here  for  industry.  This 
is  the  home  of  the  thievish  Bedouin,  who  scours  the 
smooth  surface  of  the  plain  on  his  fleet  mare  in 
search  of  plunder.  This  region  has  always  been 
insecure,  both  for  farmer  and  traveller,  since  history 
began.  The  Bedouins  make  frequent  incursions 
from  beyond  the  Jordan,  destroy  whole  crops,  and 
drive  off"  as  many  cattle  as  they  desire.  This  know- 
ledge is  very  annoying  to  my  friend  Smith,  and  ho 
now  openly  declares  himself  in  favor  of  tillibuster- 
ism.  He  wants  to  go  home  and  raise  a  company 
of  fillibusters,  and  bring  them  over  here  to  exter- 
minate the  thieving  Arabs,  lie  thinks  a  few  hun- 
dreds of  Uncle  Sam's  boys  would  either  civilize  or 
exterminate  them ;  but  rather  favors  the  latter. 
Smith  generally  has  very  correct  notions  of  things. 

We  now  approach   Mount   Tabor,  certainly  the 
most  beautiful   mountain  we  have   seen,  for  it  is 


324  hal's  travels. 

thicklj  dotted  with  small  oak  trees,  a  sight  we  have 
not  before  met  with  in  Palestine.  A  hard  climb  of 
fourteen  hundred  feet  brings  us  to  the  summit. 
The  view  from  here  is  lovely  beyond  description. 
"VVe  take  in  the  whole  plain  of  Esdraelon  at  a 
glance,  from  the  foot  of  the  hill  below  us  to  the  base 
of  Carmel  and  Gilboa,  one  unbroken  sea  of  verdure. 
Little  Hermon  is  before  us,  and  the  villages  of  Nain 
and  Endor  clinging  to  its  side.  To  the  east  we  see 
a  long  stretch  of  the  Jordan  valley,  and  the  moun- 
tains of  Gilead  beyond  it.  To  the  north-east  we 
see  a  small  portion  of  the  Sea  of  Galilee,  and  away, 
very  far  away  beyond  we  see  the  towering  cone  of 
snowy  Hermon,  and  a  portion  of  the  Lebanon 
range.  On  the  summit  of  Tabor  we  find  massive 
ruins  of  an  ancient  city.  We  know  nothing  of 
these  ruins.  It  was  evidently  a  fortified  city  of 
immense  strength.  Many  suppose  Tabor  to  be  the 
Mount  of  Transfiguration.  It  was  in  the  plain  near 
the  base  of  this  mountain  that  the  bloody  battle 
between  the  French,  under  ISTapoleon  I.,  and  the 
Turks,  occurred.  This  would  have  been  a  glorious 
point  from  which  to  view  the  battle. 

We  now  leave  Tabor,  and  proceed  to  Tiberias, 
about  five  hours'  ride,  where  we  shall  spend  the  Sab- 
bath— and  a  fitting  place  it  is  to  spend  the  day  of 
rest.  Tiberias  is  a  walled  town,  containing  about 
two  or  three  thousand  inhabitants,  just  on  the  mar- 
gin of  the  Sea  of  Galilee.  It  is  noted  for  filth  and 
fleas,  the  latter  of  which  are  without  number,  and 
of  marvellous  size.     It  is  said  that  the  flea  congress 


HAL'S     TRAVELS.  325 

assembles  lierc,  and  if  so,  we  can  readily  believe 
that  they  hold  night  sessions,  and  present  "bills" 
incessantly.  We  can  here  sing  with  feeling  that 
beautiful  parody  which  runs  thus : 

"Oft  in  the  stilly  night, 

Eve  slumber's  chains  have  bound  me, 
I  feel  the  cursed  bite 
Of  something  crawling  round  me." 

Smith  carries  the  bass  beautifully,  and  Miss  Kissiah 
screams  out  the  treble  enchantiugly. 

Almost  every  spot  around  this  little  sea  is  holy 
ground,  for  here  is  where  our  Saviour  lived,  after 
he  was  rejected  by  the  people  of  Nazareth.  He 
taught  the  multitudes  on  these  shores,  and  chose 
some  of  his  apostles  from  the  lishing-boats  on  its 
waters.  But  these  shores  at  that  day  were  not  so 
silent  and  desolate  as  now ;  they  were  teeming  with 
life.  Several  cities  lay  at  intervals  along  its  margin 
— such  as  Capernaum,  Chorazin,  the  two  Bethsaidas, 
Gamala,  Ilippas,  Scythopolis,  Gadara,  Tiberias,  etc., 
etc.  Vast  multitudes  lived  here,  and  thej^  followed 
the  Lord  daily  to  hear  his  preaching.  Sometimes 
he  was  so  thronged  that  he  would  enter  into  a  boat 
and  thrust  out  from  the  shore.  Just  over  yonder 
we  see  the  place  where  he  once  fed  five  thousand 
people  with  a  few  loaves  and  fishes ;  and  just  here, 
on  this  little  hill,  he  fed  another  company  of  seven 
thousand  in  a  like  miraculous  manner.  AVe  read 
our  Bible  here  with  intense  interest,  because  the 
scenes  to  which  they  relate  were  here.  Just  oppo- 
site to  where  we   now  stand  is  the  place  where 


326  hal's  travels. 

Gadara  stood,  and  wliere  the  Gadarenes  were  so 
alarmed  at  tlie  teachings  and  power  of  the  Lord. 

We  take  a  boat  and  sail  partly  round  the  sea,  (it 
is  but  a  little  sea,)  and  visit  the  ruins  of  many  of  the 
ancient  cities,  such  as  Capernaum,  Chorazin,  etc., 
all  of  which  possess  wonderful  interest.  We  spend 
most  of  Saturday  and  the  whole  of  Sunday  in  wan- 
dering, and  reading  the  Scriptures — not  forgetting 
to  bathe  in  the  sacred  waters.  The  only  inhabited 
city  on  this  sea  now  is  Tiberias,  and  it  seems  going 
to  destruction. 

Our  sail  upon  the  sea  is  very  pleasant,  for  there 
is  just  breeze  enough  to  waft  our  little  ship  merrily 
along.  As  we  sail  we  read  the  story  of  the  great 
storm  that  once  occurred  here,  and  the  great  calm 
which  followed,  when  our  Saviour  rebuked  the 
winds.  We  read,  too,  of  his  walking  upon  the 
water,  and  of  Peter's  daring  attempt  to  do  the  same. 

We  leave  Tiberias  to-morrow  for  Nazareth,  having 
changed  the  plan  of  our  route.  The  danger  of  rob- 
bers along  the  road,  and  some  of  our  party  being 
pressed  for  time,  we  shall  not  go  to  Damascus,  but 
proceed  to  Beyrout,  by  way  of  Tyre,  Sidon,  etc. — a 
more  interesting  route,  I  think,  than  the  one  by 
Damascus,  for  it  will  take  us  by  Can  a  and  Nazareth 
and  Carmel,  and  many  other  places  I  desire  to  see. 
Farewell  till  I  write  again.  Hal. 


hal's  thavels.  327 


LETTER    XXX. 

TIBERIAS    TO    BEY  ROUT. 

There  is  a  commotion  in  our  camp  this  morning 
— a  running  to  and  fro  of  our  party,  and  an  expres- 
sion of  alarm  on  every  countenance.  Brown  is  miss- 
ing !  Yes,  the  daring  Brown,  whose  long  hair 
and  immense  beard  and  moustache  have  rendered 
him  the  admiration  of  the  ladies  of  our  party — es- 
pecially Mrs.  Smith — is  gone,  and  nobody  knows 
where,  though  all  believe  that  he  is  kidnapped  by 
the  Bedouins.  Search  has  been  made  for  him  upon 
the  hills  and  all  along  the  sea-shore,  and  whoops 
and  yells  have  been  echoed,  from  crag  to  crag  in 
vain.  Brown  answers  not.  He  went  quietly  to 
bed  in  his  tent  last  night,  and  has  not  been  seen 
since.  lie  must  be  in  the  hands  of  the  banditti,  for 
breakfast  has  now  been  read}'  and  waiting  for  half 
an  hour,  and  still  he  comes  not — a  circumstance 
never  before  known  since  the  commencement  of 
our  travels — for  Brown  is  not  a  man  to  slis-ht  the 
table  comforts.  Perhaps  he  has  gone  up  on  the 
Alount  of  Beatitudes,  (which  is  hard  by,)  to  meditate, 
perhaps  to  pray.  But  no.  Brown  is  not  addicted 
to  such  practices,  that  we  arc  aware  of.     Besides, 


328  hal's  travels. 

we  have  fisli — fresh  fish  from  the  waters  of  Galilee 
— for  breakfast,  and  Brown  is  astonishingly  fond  of 
fish.  But  we  must  not  stop  supinely  here.  Captain 
Smith  has  given  the  word  of  command,  and  we 
must  be  in  the  saddle  and  away.  The  country 
must  be  scoured,  and  Smith  swears  he  will  kill  the 
first  Arab  we  meet  if  he  give  not  information  of  our 
lost  friend — and  Smith's  oaths  are  fearful.  Arming 
ourselves  is  but  the  work  of  a  moment,  and  we 
gallop  away  from  our  encampment  vowing  to  eat 
not  until  our  comrade  is  found — for  it  will  never  do 
to  give  Mr.  Brown  up  so!  "Dare-devil"  and  his 
rider  are  of  course  iu  the  lead,  and  the  flag  is  again 
unfurled  to  the  morning  breeze.  We  take  our 
course  along  the  margin  of  the  sea  of  Galilee  to- 
wards the  outlet  of  the  Jordan,  for  in  that  region,  it 
is  said,  the  robbers  most  do  congregate. 

A  brisk  ride  of  a  mile  brings  us  within  a  fcAv 
hundred  yards  of  the  hot  springs,  which  issue  from 
the  base  of  the  mountain  and  flow  oft'  into  the  sea, 
when — lo,  and  behold  !  we  see  the  comely  form  of 
the  lost  Brown  issuing  from  the  old  building  which 
covers  the  springs,  and  innocently  taking  his  course 
towards  us — evidently  as  much  surprised  to  see  us 
in  battle  array  as  we  are  delighted  to  see  him. 
He  has  only  been  taking  a  hot  bath  for  his  rheuma- 
tism, having  got  up  and  left  the  camp  before  the 
rest  of  us  were  astir.  Smith  gives  him  a  round 
cursing  (Smith  will  be  profane,  notwithstanding  the 
sacredness  of  the  scenes  around  us)  for  his  impru- 
dence, and  we  wind  our  way  back  to  the  encamp- 


hal's  travels.  329 

ment,  feeling  a  little  foolish,  Avhere  we  find  the 
ladies  iu  mortal  terror,  having  seen  a  couple  of 
armed  Arabs  prowling  near  them  during  our  short 
absence.  The  delight  of  again  seeing  Brown  return 
unharmed,  soon  recovers  them,  and  Mrs.  Smith 
kindly  pats  his  ruddy  check,  and  smilingly  tells 
him  he  must  not  do  so  any  more.  Mrs.  S.  seems 
to  have  a  growing  fondness  for  Brown's  moustache. 

We  sit  down  to  a  cold  breakfast,  and  by  the  time 
we  are  through,  the  tents  are  struck,  the  baggage 
packed,  and  the  jingle  of  the  little  bells  on  the  bag- 
gage mules  is  soon  heard  as  they  wind  their  way  up 
the  steep  mountain  side.  We  mount  our  horses, 
take  a  last  look  at  the  beautiful  little  sea  of  Galilee, 
bid  farewell  to  Tiberias  and  its  swarms  of  fleas, 
and  take  the  road  towards  N'azareth — for  we  must 
sleep  there  to-night. 

The  country  through  which  wo  travel  is  very 
pretty  and  picturesque — rich,  but  poorly  cultivated. 
We  pass  by  some  very  pretty  towns — only  pretty, 
however,  at  a  distance  —  surrounded  with  rich 
groves  of  olive  trees.  In  the  distance  we  see  snowy 
Ilermon,  and  peaks  of  the  Lebanon  range.  The 
first  town  we  arrive  at  possessing  scriptural  interest 
is  Cana,  which,  for  a  wonder,  is  a  neat  village, 
prettily  situated  on  a  hill-side,  and  surrounded  by 
olive  and  other  fruit  trees.  Cana  of  (Jalilee  is 
memorable  as  the  place  where  our  Lord  performed 
his  first  miracle  of  changing  water  into  wine  at  a 
marriage-feast.  Nothing  else  is  recorded  of  it  that 
I  know  of.     There  is  a  large  spring  of  water  just 


330  HAL'S    TRAVELS. 

outside  tlie  town,  from  which  no  doubt  the  water 
was  taken  at  the  time  of  our  Lord's  visit,  as  it  is  the 
only  spring  near.  We  see  a  number  of  the  village 
damsels  around  it  with  their  water-pots.  In  an  old 
Greek  church  here  some  water-pots  are  shown, 
said  to  be  the  same  w^hich  contained  the  miraculous 
wine.  We  believe  as  much  of  the  story  as  we 
choose.  There  are  remains  of  an  old  house  here, 
said  to  be  that  of  IsTathanael. 

We  now  hasten  on  to  Nazareth — one  of  the  most 
sacred  spots  on  the  face  of  the  earth.  We  find 
it  a  picturesque  little  city,  built  upon  a  hill,  but 
surrounded  by  mountains  overtopping  it.  It  con- 
tains a  population  of  over  four  thousand,  two-thirds 
of  whom  are  Christian,  and  decidedly  the  cleanest, 
best-looking,  best-mannered  people  we  have  found 
in  Palestine.  It  is  the  cleanest  and  best  built 
town  we  have  seen — the  houses  all  built  of  light- 
colored  stone,  with  flat  roofs. 

Nazareth  is  as  a  household  word  throughout 
Christendom,  for  it  was  the  home  of  the  Saviour's 
boyhood,  the  scene  of  his  early  labors,  his  prayers, 
and  his  whole  private  life.  How  often  must  he 
have  run  in  boyhood  about  these  streets !  How 
often  must  he  have  accompanied  his  mother  to  this 
very  fountain  here,  hard  by  our  camp  !  How  often 
must  he  have  sat  with  his  parents  in  the  quiet  even- 
ings on  the  housetop,  as  is  still  the  custom  !  How 
often  must  he  have  wandered  over  these  rocky  hill- 
tops, meditating  on  his  divine  mission,  and  holding 
sweet  communion  with  his  Father !    But  we  have 


ual's  travels.  331 

no  memorials  of  this  period  of  the  Saviour's  life. 
It  is  enough  for  us  to  know  that  the  Lord  dwelt 
here ;  that  for  thirty  years  he  trod  this  spot  of 
earth,  and  that  his  eyes  were  familiar  with  the 
objects  spread  around.  In  his  public  life  we  know 
of  onl}-^  tAvo  incidents  recorded  in  connection  with 
"the  city  in  which  he  was  brought  up."  In  one 
instance  the  Nazarenes  were  so  offended  and  exas- 
perated when  he  preached  that  "they  thrust  him 
out  of  the  city,  and  led  him  unto  the  brow  of  a  hill 
on  which  their  city  was  built,  that  they  might  cast 
him  down  headlong."  Upon  glancing  round  we 
can  see  more  than  one  "brow"  which  might  have 
answered  their  wicked  designs.  From  that  moment 
JS^azareth  ceased  to  be  his  home,  for  "  he  came  and 
dwelt  in  Capernaum."  When  he  visited  "  his  own" 
people  again  they  sneered  at  him,  and  said,  "  Is  not 
this  the  carpenter,  the  son  of  Mary,  the  brother  of 
James,  and  Joses,  and  of  Judas,  and  Simon  ?  And 
are  not  his  sisters  here  with  us  ?  And  they  were 
offended  at  him." 

"While  in  Nazareth  we  go  round  of  course  to  see 
the  holy  places  which  the  monks  are  alwa3's  ready 
to  point  out — for  money — such  as  the  place  of  An- 
nunciation, Mary's  house,  Joseph's  carpenter-shop, 
etc.,  etc. ;  but  we  care  for  none  of  these  things.  It 
is  sufficient  for  us  to  know  that  Jesus  and  Mary  and 
Joseph  lived  here.  These  localities  are  but  guessed 
at  b}'^  the  monks. 

This  fountain  here  just  by  our  camp  is  called 
"Mary's  Fountain;"  and  it  is  said  that  she  was 


332  hal's   travels. 

there  drawing  water  when  the  first  salutation  of  the 
angel  came  to  her. 

From  Nazareth  we  proceed  towards  Acre,  pass- 
ing near  the  base  of  the  beautiful  Mount  Carmel. 
We  do  not  climb  the  steep  acclivity,  but  from  the 
plain  we  see  the  place  where  the  event  occurred 
which  gives  to  Carmel  its  chief  interest — the  place 
of  Elijah's  sacrifice.  We  open  our  Bibles  and  read 
the  story  as  recorded  in  1  Kings  xviii.  17-46.  It 
was  just  up  there  the  great  multitude  of  people 
were  assembled  to  witness  the  conflict  between  the 
one  prophet  of  God  and  the  eight  hundred  and  fifty 
prophets  of  Baal.  The  people  no  doubt  looked  on 
with  intense  interest,  while  from  morning  till  noon, 
and  from  noon  till  the  time  of  the  evening  sacrifice, 
the  priests  of  Baal  cried  in  vain.  When  the  sun 
was  sinking  behind  the  mountain,  Elijah's  sacrifice 
was  accepted.  The  last  act  of  the  tragedy  was  per- 
formed on  this  plain — possibly  near  where  we  now 
stand — when  Elijah  brought  the  eight  hundred  and 
fifty  defeated  prophets  down  to  this  little  river 
Kishon,  and  slew  them  here.  jS'ow,  reader,  get 
your  Bible  and  read  the  eloquent  portion  of  Scrip- 
ture relating  this  tragedy.  Carmel  is  truly  beau- 
tiful, its  slopes  being  covered,  like  those  of  Tabor, 
with  small  trees. 

We  pass  through  a  lovely  region  to-day.  The 
plain  of  Acre  is  one  of  the  richest  in  Palestine — 
producing  alike  luxuriant  crops,  and  the  rankest 
weeds  in  the  country.  The  city  of  Acre  is  not  men- 
tioned in  Scripture,  so  far  as  I  know,  but  it  is  cer- 


HAL'S    TRAVELS.  333 

tainly  one  of  the  most  important  towns  in  the 
country.  It  is  a  very  strongly  fortified  place,  and 
contains  about  five  thousand  inhabitants,  including 
a  garrison  of  Turkish  soldiers,  i^apoleon  called  it 
the  key  to  Palestine.  Acre  is  also  called  Ptolemais. 
Man}'  battles  have  been  fought  here,  and  the  blood 
of  thousands  of  brave  men  has  drenched  these  plains. 
It  was  a  place  of  much  importance  during  the  time 
of  the  crusades.  But  we  must  not  stop  to  recount 
the  scenes  that  have  occurred  here. 

From  Acre  we  take  the  road  to  Tyre,  which 
is  most  of  the  way  along  the  seashore,  and  over 
exceedingly  rough  spurs  of  the  Lebanon  mountains, 
that  jut  out  into  the  sea  occasionally.  In  crossing 
these  spurs  our  horses  are  called  upon  to  exercise 
that  peculiar  talent  known  only  to  the  horses  of  this 
country — to-wit,  "getting  up  stairs"  and  climbing 
ladders.  "We  have  left  Palestine,  and  are  now  in 
Phoenicia,  and  to-night  we  sleep  at  Tyre,  the  ancient 
"mistress  of  the  seas."  These  snowy  mountain 
peaks  to  our  right  are  the  mountains  of  Lebanon. 
Just  before  arriving  at  Tyre  we  pass  some  remark- 
able fountains  and  reservoirs  of  immense  size,  and 
which  are  as  old  as  history  itself.  The  water  is 
brought  down  in  aqueducts  from  Lebanon,  and 
served  in  ancient  times  to  supply  the  great  city  of 
Tyre  with  excellent  water.  The  water  is  ample  to 
turn  any  amount  of  machinery,  but  it  is  onlj-  used 
now  to  turn  one  solitary  mill.  IsTear  the  fountains 
we  see  some  beautiful  gazelles  feeding,  but  they  flee 
at  our  approach. 


334  hal's  travels. 

We  now  approacli  Tyre,  where  we  rest  to-niglit. 
We  find  its  walls  broken  down,  and  every  thing 
about  it  having  an  old  and  dingy  appearance ;  but 
8till  it  is  not  the  desolate  place  we  expected  to  find 
it.  It  has  a  population  of  three  or  four  thousand, 
and  upon  entering  the  gate  we  find  the  streets  com- 
paratively clean,  and  the  people  looking  decidedly 
respectable  for  Asiatics.  This  was  once  the  greatest 
of  the  Phoenician  cities,  even  greater  than  its  mo- 
ther Sidon ;  and  the  great  number  of  old  columns 
and  sculptured  stones  we  see  lying  about  convince 
us  that  a  superb  style  of  architecture  prevailed  here 
in  olden  times.  These  stones  and  columns  are  al- 
most innumerable,  built  up  in  the  modern  walls,  and 
piles  of  them  lying  in  the  water,  and  all  along  the 
beach.  We  are  reminded  at  every  step,  and  by  every 
glance,  of  the  prophecies  uttered  against  this  city  : 
"And  they  shall  make  a  spoil  of  thy  riches,  and 
make  a  prey  of  thy  merchandise,  and  they  shall 
break  down  thy  walls,  and  destroy  thy  pleasant 
houses.  .  .  .  They  shall  lament  over  thee,  say- 
ing, '  What  city  is  like  Tyrus,  like  the  destroyed  in 
the  midst  of  the  sea !'  "  and  again,  "  They  shall  break 
down  the  towers  of  Tyrus,  and  make  her  like  the 
top  of  a  rock.  It  shall  be  a  place  for  the  spreading 
of  nets  in  the  midst  of  the  sea."  Here  we  see  scores 
of  fishermen's  nets  spread  upon  the  old  broken  walls, 
to  dry.  We  sit  down  here  on  this  exquisitely  wrought 
capital,  which  once  no  doubt  adorned  a  graceful 
column  in  some  magnificent  building,  and  read  with 
intense  interest  the  27th  chapter  of  Ezekiel,  which, 


II  A  L  '  S    T  K  A  V  E  L  S .  335 

for  graphic  power  of  description  and  prophetic  ac- 
curacy, is  probably  unequalled  in  the  whole  compass 
of  literature.  "\Ve  recommend  a  perusal  of  it  to  our 
friends. 

We  are  also  interested  in  this  cit^^of  Tyre  because 
it  was  once  the  city  of  King  Hiram — and  a  very 
clever  man  he  was,  too,  no  doubt,  for  he  w^as  a  par- 
ticular friend  of  King  David,  and  furnished  that 
monarch  with  both  materials  and  workmen  to  build 
his  palace.  There  also  existed  a  good  understand- 
ing between  Iliram  and  Solomon — as  always  should 
be  the  case  between  high-minded  gentlemen — and 
the  former  furnished  the  latter  with  an  immense 
amount  of  cedar-wood,  etc.,  for  the  building  of  the 
Temple  at  Jerusalem.  I  told  the  story  of  Hiram's 
benevolence  to  my  friend, Smith  this  morning,  but 
he  was  not  disposed  to  do  justice  to  the  Tyrian  king. 
He  thought  that  Hiram  knew  "  w^hich  side  of  his 
bread  was  buttered,"  and  only  furnished  materials 
to  the  kings  of  Israel  because  he  feared  them.  We 
think  differently. 

"We  make  a  little  excursion  to  the  tomb  of  King 
Hiram,  which  is  some  distance  outside  the  town. 
We  find  it  rather  a  remarkable  monument,  standing 
alone,  apart  alike  from  human  habitation  and  an- 
cient ruin — a  solitary  venerable  relic  of  remote  an- 
tiquity. It  is  an  immense  sarcophagus  of  limestone, 
hewn  out  of  a  single  block,  twelve  feet  long,  and 
eight  wide,  (according  to  the  measure  of  my  walk- 
ing-cane,) and  six  high,  covered  with  a  lid  five  feet 
thick,  and  resting  on  a  massive  pedestal  ten  feet 


336  hal's  travels. 

high.  The  monument  is  perfect,  though  weather- 
beaten.  And  here  was  deposited  the  remains  of 
Solomon's  friend  and  ally ! 

Leaving  Tyre,  we  take  the  road  to  Sidon,  which  is 
through  the  plain  of  Phoenicia,  where  a  mournful, 
solitary  silence  prevails.  The  plain  between  the 
mountain  and  the  sea  is  little  more  than  a  mile 
wide,  and  very  rich,  but,  sad  to  say,  most  of  it  lies 
waste.  The  mountain  sides  and  wild  glens  above 
are  clustering  with  villages ;  while  every  available 
spot  is  cultivated  in  terraces ;  but  the  plain  is  deso- 
late. The  only  signs  of  life  we  see  as  we  ride  along 
are  a  few  Arab  tents,  and  an  occasional  horseman, 
armed  to  the  teeth,  and  oftener  a  little  troop  of 
gazelles.  Security  for  life  and  property  is  unknown 
here  save  beneath  the  walls  of  cities,  or  amid  the 
mountain-fastnesses.  Hence  the  plains  lie  waste, 
while  the  steep  mountain-sides  and  crevices  are  cul- 
tivated. We  find  some  ancient  ruins  along  the  way, 
but  know  nothing  of  them.  The  only  place  of 
scriptural  interest  we  pass  is  the  village  of  Sarepta, 
the  place  where  the  Prophet  Elijah  came  during  the 
great  famine,  and  met  the '  poor  widow  woman 
gathering  sticks  to  prepare  her  meal.  We  remem- 
ber the  interview  between  them,  and  the  sequel: 
how  the  widow's  meal  and  oil  were  miraculously 
multiplied,  and  how  her  dying  son  was  subsequently 
restored  to  health  by  the  prophet.  These  miracles 
impressed  Divine  truth  upon  that  poor  woman,  and 
she  confessed — "  Now  by  this  I  know  that  thou  art 
a  man  of  God,  and  that  the  word  of  the  Lord  in 


hal's  travels.  337 

thy  moutli  is  truth."  We  open  our  Bibles  hero 
and  read  the  touching  story  in  the  17th  chapter  of 
1  Kings.  It  is  said  that  here  is  where  the  Syro- 
phenician  woman  met  the  Saviour  during  his  visit  to 
the  "coasts  of  Tyre  and  Sidon."  "We  read  the 
little  story  in  the  15th  chapter  of  Matthew,  and  also 
in  the  7th  chapter  of  Mark. 

"We  here  get  our  first  view  of  Sidon,  away  in 
the  distance,  emboAvered  in  luxuriant  gardens  and 
orchards.  The  view  is  most  lovely,  though  three 
hours'  ride  distant.  Upon  entering  the  city  we  find 
the  streets  after  the  usual  Eastern  type,  with  the 
usual  amount  of  filth,  and  running  in  no  particular 
direction,  but  winding  about  promiscuously.  Some 
of  the  houses,  however,  approach  elegance,  especi- 
ally those  along  the  wall  overlooking  the  orchards. 
It  contains  a  population  of  about  five  thousand. 
Just  outside  the  town  on  the  seashore  we  find  our 
tents  pitched,  and,  as  usual,  surrounded  by  a  swarm 
of  the  natives,  who  are  always  curious  to  see  stran- 
gers. Among  the  rest  we  are  met  by  a  venerable 
old  gentleman  and  all  his  fiimily,  consisting  of  his 
wife,  a  son,  and  four  grown  daughters.  They  are 
Protestant  Christians,  and  meet  us  as  brethren. 
We  are  glad  to  see  them,  and  shake  them  heartily 
by  the  hand.  The  daughters  speak  English,  having 
been  taught  at  the  Bey  rout  Mission.  They  are 
all  dressed  in  the  true  Eastern  style — the  flowing 
trowsers  and  long  white  veils.  They  carry  on  a 
school  here,  and  tell  us  that  they  occasionally  gain 
additions   to   their   little    Church.      A   Protestant 


338  hal's  travels. 

Cliristiau  is  a  rare  sight  in  this  seemingly  God- 
forsaken country.  "We  do  not  remember  the  name 
of  this  family — and  who  could  remember  a  regular 
Arab  name  ? 

We  see  very  few  remains  of  antiquity  about 
Sidon,  although  it  is  one  of  the  oldest  cities  in  the 
world,  as  we  find  it  mentioned  in  the  tenth  chapter 
of  Genesis,  along  with  Gaza  and  Sodom  and 
Gomorrah.  It  is  said  to  have  been  founded  by  the 
great-grandson  of  Noah — and  that,  you  know,  was 
long,  long  ago.  "VYe  find  many  allusions  made  to 
this  city  in  various  parts  of  Scripture.  Paul  touched 
here  when  on  his  voyage  to  Athens.  Sidon  was 
once  the  mistress  of  the  seas,  but  afterwards  Tyre 
took  the  wind  out  of  her  sails,  and  became  the 
great  city  of  the  East. 

"We  leave  Sidon,  and  take  the  road  along  the 
seashore  to  Beyrout,  one  of  the  most  bleak,  barren, 
desolate  roads  we  ever  travelled.  We  plunge 
through  deep  sand,  and  climb  rugged  spurs  of  the 
mountain  from  morning  till  night,  with  a  most 
withering  Syrian  sun  pouring  down  upon  us  with- 
out mercy.  We  shall  remetnber  this  day's  ride  as 
the  most — in  fact,  the  only  disagreeable  day  of  our 
journey. 

But  we  rejoice  not  a  little  as  we  approach  Bey- 
rout. It  is  like  entering  Paradise.  Before  enter- 
ing the  city  we  pass  through  a  forest  of  oranges, 
lemons,  figs,  almonds,  apricots,  peaches,  pears, 
olives,  pines,  and  mulberries,  all  growing  luxuri- 
antly, forming  a  forest  of  beautifully  tinted  foliage. 


hal's   travels.  339 

Going  into  Bo^TOut  is  like  getting  into  tlie  "white 
eettleraents"  after  wandering  long  among  savages, 
for  here  we  see  white  men,  and  many  buildings 
that  really  look  European  in  style.  It  is  a  city  con- 
taining about  fifty  thousand  inhabitants,  a  good 
many  of  whom  are  Protestant  Christians,  for  the 
American  missionaries  have  done  wonders  here. 

Here  ends  our  tent- life  in  Palestine  and  Syria. 
Here  we  bid  farewell  to  mules  and  horses,  for  our 
next  ride  will  be  upon  the  troubled  waters  of  the 
restless  ocean.  It  is  aftecting  to  see  the  parting 
between  Smith  and  "Dare-devil;"  for  truly  if  man 
ever  loved  horse,  Smith  is  the  man,  and  "Dare- 
devil" the  horse.  Smith  has  clipped  a  whisp  of 
hair  from  the  horse's  mane,  (he  has  none  on  his 
tail,)  which  he  intends  to  carry  as  a  souvenir.  I 
think  a  few  tears  were  shed  at  the  parting.  "We 
also  take  leave  of  Ibraheem,  our  dragoman,  and  he, 
from  absolute  sorrow,  immediately  gets  on  a  spree. 
The  same  may  be  said  of  Ilalleel,  his  assistant,  and 
poor  Demetri,  the  cook — for  they  all  claim  to  be. 
Christians,  and  are  therefore  privileged  to  indulge 
in  villainous  drinks.  'Our  tents  are  furled  up,  our 
camp  equipage  stowed  away,  and  we  betake  our- 
selves to  the  good  cheer  of  the  Hotel  Bellevue, 
where  we  find  some  other  Americans,  one  of  whom, 
a  Mr.  Boots,  seems  to  know  something  about  ever}' 
thing  in  the  world,  and  takes  much  delight  in  tell- 
ing all  he  knows.  I  may  tell  you  something  about 
him  at  some  future  time.  He  is  to  accompany  us 
to  Constantinople,  at  which  we  are  all  of  course 


340  hal's   travels. 

wonderfully  pleased — for  Mr.  Boots  is  a  man  not  to 
be  lightly  regarded,  being  a  man  of  huge  prepon- 
derosity,  and  marvellous  ability.  We  have  already 
set  him  down  as  a  trump  card. 

We  remain  in  Beyrout  two  or  three  days  to  rest, 
and  during  the  time  wander  about  the  city  and 
through  the  groves  and  gardens  to  our  hearts'  con- 
tent. We  visit  the  American  Mission  School  and 
Publishing  House,  where  we  are  courteously  re- 
ceived by  Rev.  Dr.  Van  Dyck,  Dr.  Thomson,  and 
others  connected  with  the  Mission.  We  are  all 
invited  to  Dr.  Thomson's  to  tea,  where  we  spend 
one  of  the  most  agreeable  evenings  we  have  passed 
since  leaving  home.  We  meet  many  missionaries, 
and  other  Americans,  among  them  Rev.  Dr.  Hatty, 
from  Damascus,  Rev.  Mr.  Porter,  from  Sidon,  and 
Rev.  Mr.  Jessup,  from  Aleppo.  Dr.  Thomson  is  a 
veteran  in  the  missionary  cause,  having  labored 
here  for  eighteen  years.  He  is  the  author  of  the 
"  Land  and  the  Book,"  a  most  excellent  work  on 
Palestine. 

This  country  is  greatly  disturbed  now.  An  old 
feud  between  the  Maronite  Christians  and  the 
Druses  is  being  revived,  and  much  bloody  work  is 
anticipated.  A  great  many  murders  have  been 
committed  within  the  last  few  days  in  the  moun- 
tains of  Lebanon,  between  here  and  Damascus. 
An  open  war  of  extermination  between  these  two 
sects  is  anticipated.  It  matters  little  which  exter- 
minates the  other,  for  they  are  villains  all. 

We  are  now  preparing  to  leave  Beyrout.      Our 


hal's  travels.  341 

steamer  sails  for  Constantinople  to-morrow.  I  may 
write  you  another  letter  one  of  these  days.  Till 
I  do,  good-bye.  Yours,  Hal. 

P.  S. — I  must  not  forget  to  tell  j'ou  that  I  have 
bought  some  splendid  Arab  horses,  which,  if  I  suc- 
ceed in  getting  them  home,  will  create  quite  a  sen- 
sation, I  think.  In  spirit  they  are  of  the  "Dare- 
devil" breed.  The  Arab  horses,  you  know,  have 
long  been  celebrated  throughout  the  world  for  their 
iieetness  and  bottom.  It  is  said  that  they  can  run 
all  day.  They  are  also  horses  of  great  beauty. 
They  are  mainly  noted,  however,  for  long  wind. 


CliDAll  OF   LEDANON. 


342  hal's   travels. 


LETTER  XXXI. 

BEY  ROUT     TO     PARIS. 

From  the  rumbling  noise  that  comes  floating 
across  the  great  waters,  I  am  convinced  that  the 
political  caldron  at  home  is  boiling  over,  and  per- 
haps scalding  folks.  The  grandiloquent  farce  re- 
cently enacted  in  Charleston  has,  I  see,  burst  the 
Democratic  party  wide  open,  and  that  some  of  the 
actors  in  that  funny  scene  now  threaten,  for  mere 
spite,  to  tear  the  Union  into  several  separate  and 
distinct  pieces.  The  Black  Eepublicans,  I  observe, 
sneer  and  slyly  laugh  in  their  sleeves  at  the  farce ; 
but  they  too — many  of  them — are  willing  to  assist 
in  the  threatened  destruction ;  and,  between  the 
two  destructive  factions,  the  danger  seems  immi- 
nent, judging  from  the  sputtering  noise  they  make. 
But  while  these  things  are  going  on,  I  calmly  smoke 
my  pipe,  and  trust  that  the  fool-killer  may  come 
along  in  time  to  save  our  country  from  the  claws 
of  those  ranting  cock-sparrows  who  bestride  the 
editorial  tripod  or  mount  the  stump,  to  j)reach 
destruction  to  gaping  multitudes.  With  this  com- 
fortable hope  I  shall  smoke  on,  and  leave  politics 
alone,  and  tell  you  something  more  about  my 
travels  in  the  East. 


hal's  travels.  343 

Now,  if  you  would  accompany  me,  it  is  absolutely 
necessary  for  you  to  again  draw  on  your  seven- 
league  boots,  and  nerve  yourself  for  the  longest 
course  you  ever  ran ;  for  this  letter  must  take  us  all 
the  way  from  the  coasts  of  Asia  Minor  to  the  shores 
of  sunny  France — from  Beyrout  to  Paris.  Nor 
shall  we  go  direct,  for  we  must  needs  go  by  Smyrna, 
Constantinople,  and  Athens,  taking  a  bird's-eye 
view  of  these  cities,  and  several  other  interesting 
points  along  the  route. 

My  last  letter  left  us,  I  think,  on  the  point  of  sail- 
ing from  the  city  of  Beyrout,  which  we  shall  now 
proceed  to  do.  We  expect  a  row  with  the  custom- 
house officers,  and  are  not  disappointed  in  our  ex- 
pectations. They  deem  us  proper  subjects  for 
plunder,  and  consequently  proceed  to  plunder  us. 
They  examine  our  baggage  most  rigidly,  and  un- 
blushingly  declare  that  most  of  the  little  trinkets 
we  have  picked  up  in  the  Holy  Land  are  forbidden 
by  law  to  be  taken  out  of  the  country.  "\Ve  bluster 
a  good  deal,  and  my  friend  Smith  even  goes  so  far 
as  to  get  out  one  of  his  "six-shooters."  But  it's 
no  use :  they  are  too  many  for  us.  Finally,  rather 
than  lose  our  little  souvenirs,  we  pay  a  liberal 
"backsheesh,"  which  is  wonderfully  efficacious  in 
making  an  official  blind  to  the  law.  We  shake  the 
dust  from  our  feet,  and  go  aboard  the  steamer  that 
awaits  us  in  the  harbor. 

All  aboard,  and  the  whistle  has  sounded  for  the 
last  time.  We  all  stand  on  deck,  and,  as  the  noble 
vessel  steams  out  of  the  bay,  we  take  a  last  look  at 


34-4  hal's  travels. 

one  of  the  most  lovely  scenes  man  ever  looked  upon. 
Beyrout,  with  its  white  houses  embowered  in  green 
groves  of  olive,  pine,  mulberry,  fig.  and  orange, 
backed  by  the  picturesque  mountains  of  Lebanon, 
and  the  still  taller  peaks  of  Anti-lebanou,  tipped 
with  eternal  snow,  and  all  these  gilded  by  the  set- 
ting sun,  make  a  scene  which  no  painter  ever  has 
or  ever  can  portray. 

Now  let  us  see  who  are  our  companions  du  voy- 
age. A  glance  tells  us  that  it  is  a  motley  company, 
composed  of  representatives  from  almost  every  na- 
tion under  the  sun — Greeks,  Arabians,  Turks,  Per- 
sians, and  Europeans.  Here  we  have  an  old  English 
Consul,  who  has  -recently  "  gone  and  got  himself 
married,"  and  has  been  taking  a  little  bridal  tour; 
a  Turkish  Pasha,  who  sits  like  a  fat,  lazy  beast,  as 
he  is,  and  smokes  continually ;  several  of  the  Ger- 
man nobility — quite  respectable -looking  people; 
(we  should  like  Countess  Jaw-breaker  better,  how- 
ever, if  she  did  not  sit  upon  deck  with  the  gentle- 
men and  smoke  cigars ;)  also  a  number  of  Greeks 
of  the  better  sort,  and  a  goodly  number  of  Ameri- 
cans. And  here  is  our  new  friend  Mr.  Boots,  the 
knowing  man.  We  are  glad  to  have  him  along ; 
for  he  has  travelled  the  route  before,  and  knows  it 
all  by  heart,  and  can  tell  it  too.  Besides,  he  has 
read  Virgil  and  Homer  and  Ovid,  and  all  them 
Greek  and  Latin  fellows,  and  can  tell  us  all  about 
the  classic  ground  over  which  we  travel.  How  for- 
tunate we  are,  to  fall  in  with  Mr.  Boots !  He  speaks 
French,  German,  and  Arabic  ! 


iial's   travels.  345 

But  we  arc  in  a  great  hurry  to  finish  up  our  East- 
ern tour,  and  have  no  time  to  dwell  upon  the  varied 
accomplishments  of  Mr.  Boots.  We  must  pitsh 
ahead,  and  only  note  the  points  of  most  interest 
along  the  way ;  for  we  are  heartily  tired  of  the 
Asiatics,  and  long  to  get  among  more  civilized  peo- 
ple. Our  first  stop  is  at  the  city  of  Marino,  Island 
of  Cyprus,  where  we  go  ashore  and  ramble  through 
the  town  for  a  few  hours,  visiting  two  or  three 
churches,  and  a  Greek  school,  said  to  be  somewhat 
celebrated.  We  see  some  ancient  ruins,  but  don't 
know  what  they  are.  The  most  enjoyable  portion 
of  our  visit  is  an  hour  spent  with  Mr.  Barclay, 
United  States  Consul,  whose  Cyprus  wine  we  all 
pronounce  excellent.  In  a  distant  part  of  the  island 
Mr.  Boots  points  out  Mount  Olj-mpus,  and  dis- 
courses learnedly  about  the  Titans,  etc. ;  but  we 
don't  exactly  get  the  hang  of  his  remarks.  The 
Apostle  Paul  landed  here,  I  think,  when  on  his  way 
to  Greece.  Our  next  stopping-place  is  the  Island 
and  city  of  Rhodes,  where  the  great  Colossus  used 
to  stand,  with  its  feet  straddled  across  the  mouth  of 
the  harbor,  for  ships  to  sail  in  between  its  legs. 
The  Colossus  is  gone  now,  and  the  glory  of  Rhodes 
has  long  since  departed.  It  is  the  most  strongly- 
fortified  town  we  have  seen ;  but  a  ramble  of  an 
hour  or  two  through  its  streets  satisfies  us  that  it  is 
a  most  miserable  place.  Boots  tells  us  that  in 
ancient  times  Rhodes  was  one  of  the  most  magnifi- 
cent cities  of  the  world,  and  gives  us  a  thrilling 
account  of  how,  in  more  modern  times,  it  becamo 


346  hal's   travels. 

famous  as  the  stronghold  of  the  Knights  of  St.  John 
of  Jerusalem,  and  was  the  scene  of  the  most  heroic 
defences  on  record.  But  the  valorous  Knights  were 
finally  beaten  by  the  barbarous  Turks.  Their  city 
was  taken  from  them,  and  they  escaped  to  Malta. 
jN^o  Christian  is  now  sufi'ered  to  dwell  within  the 
walls  of  this  city.  Rhodes  is  the  most  eastern 
island  of  the  ^gean  Sea.  The  apostle  also  touched 
here  in  his  journey  to  the  West.  "We  pass  many 
other  of  the  JEgean  Islands,  but  have  not  time  to 
note  the  classic  harangues  delivered  upon  each  by 
our  learned  friend  Boots.  We  note  the  island  of 
Coos,  because  it  was  one  of  Paul's  stopping-places, 
and  Patmos,  because  it  will  ever  be  memorable  as 
the  island  to  which  John  the  Evangelist  was  ban- 
ished, and  where  he  wrote  the  book  of  Revelation. 
We  now  approach  the  beautiful  city  of  Smyrna, 
a  large  city  situated  at  the  head  of  a  long  bay  and 
good  harbor.  It  is  beautiful  to  look  at  from  the  sea, 
but  an  entrance  into  it  convinces  us  that  it  is  not 
what  it  promised  to  be.  Smyrna  is  the  great  fig 
market  of  the  world.  Most  of  the  figs  we  have  in 
the  United  States  are  brought  from  here.  A  great 
many  American  ships  are  loaded  here  annually.  In 
wandering  about  the  town,  we  are  surprised  to  see 
the  great  number  of  lambs  that  are  being  slaughtered, 
and  conclude  that  the  Smyrnians  are  certainly  the 
greatest  sheep-eating  people  in  the  world.  At  the 
door  of  almost  every  house  the  bloody  work  is  going 
on.  Our  surprise,  however,  somewhat  abates  when 
we  are  told  that  it  is  the  eve  of  the  Passover,  and 


hal's   travels^  347 

that  it  is  tlie  paschal  lamb  that  is  being  slain.  These 
people  all  seem  to  join  iu  the  great  feast.  "We  find 
the  bazaars  of  Smyrna  extensive  and  rich,  almost 
equal  to  those  of  Grand  Cairo.  It  is  a  much  better 
built  city  than  Cairo.  One  of  the  seven  Churches 
of  Asia,  mentioned  in  Revelation,  was  located  in 
this  city.  We  visit  the  remains  of  an  old  amphi- 
theatre, on  the  heights  just  above  the  city,  where  it 
is  said  that  Polycarp,  an  early  Christian  martyr,  fell 
a  victim  to  the  fury  of  the  people  and  the  wild  beasts. 
His  tomb  is  hard  by.  The  massive  ruins  on  these 
heights  attest  the  greatness  of  this  city  in  ancient 
times. 

Leaving  Smyrna,  we  soon  pass  by  the  Island  of 
Mytelene,  and  Tenedos,  and  the  Plains  of  Troy— and 
here  our  friend  Boots  waxes  eloquent  indeed.  Talks 
about  the  Greeks  and  the  Persians,  the  Macedonians 
and  the  Trojans,  the  Phoenicians  and  the  Romans ; 
about  Xerxes,  and  Ajax,  and  Achilles,  and  ever  so 
many  other  ancient  worthies — all  of  whom  he  speaks 
of  as  familiarly  as  if  he  knew  them  personally.  lie 
then  enters  into  a  lengthy  dissertation  upon  the 
gods  and  goddesses  of  old,  and  talks  so  learnedl}', 
that  we  all  gape  and  wonder  with  an  admiration 
equal  to  that  manifested  by  the  rustics  when  the 
village  schoolmaster  spoke,  as  told  by  one  Gold- 
smith, lie  told  us  of  one  Coelus,  first  King  of 
Heaven,  who  gave  his  crown  to  his  son  Titan,  who 
afterwards  abdicated  in-  favor  of  his  brother  Saturn, 
on  condition  that  he  (Saturn)  should  raise  no  male 
children.     Saturn's  wife,  Ops,  soon  after  had  twins, 


348  hal's  travels. 

whom  the  father  had  baked  into  a  pie  for  the  dinner 
of  himself  and  wife.  Saturn  did  this  barbarous 
thing  without  his  wife's  knowledge,  and  treated  it 
as  a  good  joke ;  but  she  fainted  outright,  as  most 
women  would  have  done,  as  soon  as  she  knew  that 
she  had  helped  to  devour  her  own  children.  Ops, 
like  a  dutiful  wife,  however,  soon  presented  her 
husband  with  another  child,  whom  she  called  Ju- 
piter. This  Jupiter  would  no  doubt  have  followed 
the  other  children  into  a  pie,  had  not  Ops  deceived 
her  cannibal  husband  by  giving  him  a  stone  to  eat, 
telling  him  it  was  the  child.  She  was  vastly  pleased 
at  the  success  of  her  stratagem,  but  she  was  forced 
to  keep  the  child  hid  in  a  cave  on  Mount  Ida,  (now 
in  sight,)  out  of  the  way  of  Saturn,  where  he  was  fed 
on  milk  and  honey,  and  grew  up.  Old  Titan  made 
war  upon  Saturn  as  soon  as  he  found  that  he  had 
a  grown-up  male  child — a  violation  of  the  condition 
upon  which  he  obtained  his  throne.  Jupiter  proved 
himself  a  real  Jack  the  Giant-killer,  in  assisting  his 
father  against  the  monster  Titans.  After  subduing 
the  Titans,  Jupiter  drove  his  papa  from  the  king- 
dom, and  assumed  the  reins  himself.  After  firmly 
establishing  himself  upon  the  throne  of  the  kingdom 
of  Heaven,  he  divided  the  empire  of  the  world  with 
his  two  brothers,  who  had  grown  up  in  secret  as  he 
had.  To  Neptune  he  gave  the  sea,  and  to  Pluto  the 
infernal  regions.  All  these  things  Mr.  Boots  tells 
us  as  we  quietly  steam  along  among  the  Grecian 
Isles,  where  the  occurrences  are  supposed  to  have 
taken  place.    He  tells  us  of  a  war  waged  against 


HAL'S    TRAVELS.  349 

Jupiter  by  the  giants  who  wished  to  revenge  the 
death  of  their  rchitions,  the  Titans.  These  giants 
were  earth-born  monsters  of  great  power,  and  used 
rocks,  oaks,  and  burning  woods  for  their  weapons, 
and  heaped  Mount  Ossa  upon  Pelion  to  scale  the 
walls  of  heaven.  The  gods  lied  from  before  them ; 
went  into  Egypt,  and  assumed  the  shape  of  animals, 
to  screen  themselves.  Jupiter,  however,  soon  rallied, 
and,  with  his  son  Hercules,  put  the  giants  to  flight. 
After  this  war,  Jupiter  gave  himself  up  to  pleasure, 
and  as  there  was  no  law  against  bigamy  or  poly- 
gamy, he  married  him  several  wives,  and  among 
the  rest  his  sister  Juno.  These  wives  could  not 
agree,  and  many  black  eyes  and  bloody  noses  were 
the  consequence.  Jupiter  and  Juno  were  in  the 
habit  of  indulo-ins:  in  reo:ular  "set-to's,"  the  Madam 
generally  coming  out  second  best;  but  she  paid 
Jupiter  with  interest,  by  pitching  into  his  son  Her- 
cules, and  giving  him  particular  thunder.  For  this 
injustice  she  was  suspended  from  heaven,  with  an 
anvil  tied  to  her  feet.  Her  son  Vulcan,  a  deformed 
blacksmith,  undertook  to  release  her,  seeing  which, 
Jupiter  raised  his  foot  and  kicked  him  clear  over 
the  battlements  of  heaven,  when  he  fell  to  earth, 
performing  the  journey  in  nine  days.  He  alighted 
on  the  island  of  Lemnos,  (past  which  we  are  now 
sailing,)  where  he  set  up  a  blacksmith-shop,  and  em- 
ployed his  time  in  forging  thunderbolts  for  Jupiter. 
But  it  would  be  tedious  to  recount  all  the  wonderful 
stories  told  us  by  Mr.  Boots.  He  left  Juno  still 
suspended  from  heaven  with  the  anvil  tied  to  her 


350  hal's    travels. 

feet.  Suppose  she  is  still  there.  "What  a  comfort 
it  is  to  have  such  a  learned  man  in  our  company  ! 
He  knows  some  story  connected  with  the  gods, 
about  every  island  we  pass. 

We  now  enter  the  Strait  of  the  Dardanelles  or 
Hellespont,  w^iich  divides  Europe  from  Asia.  The 
strait  is  narrow,  and  fortresses  frown  upon  us  from 
every  height.  We  pass  but  one  town  that  seems  to 
be  important — Grallipoli.  Boots  tells  us  a  story 
about  this  town,  but  we  don't  remember  it.  He 
points  out  to  us  the  very  place  where  Lord  Byron 
swam  across  the  Hellespont.  We  now  leave  the 
strait  and  enter  the  sea  of  Marmora,  through  which 
wc  ride  in  a  storm  that  threatens  to  break  things — 
but  don't.  We  get  through  safe.  The  storm  dies 
away,  and  we  glide  smoothly  into  the  still  waters 
of  the  Bosphorus,  when — O  ye  powers !  What  a 
scene  bursts  upon  us !  The  Queen  of  the  East ! 
The  city  of  the  Sultan — Constantinople — so  beau- 
tiful that  we  are  bewildered.  It  looks  like  a  city 
made  without  hands.  Had  all  the  gods  and  demi- 
gods known  to  heathen  mythology  put  their  heads 
together  and  wrought  for  centuries,  their  united 
labors  could  never  have  fashioned  any  thing  more 
beautiful.  At  the  sight  of  this  queenly  city  our 
steamer  seems  to  dash  forward  wdth  increased  speed, 
and  the  white  buildings  and  minarets  rapidly  grow 
more  and  more  distinct,  until  we  distinguish  the 
celebrated  mosque  of  St.  Sophia  and  the  Sultan's 
palace.  The  steamer  now  turns  a  jutting  point  of 
land  called  Seraglio  Point,  and  glides  at  half  speed 


hal's  travels.  351 

into  the  Golden  Horn,  the  splendid  harbor  of  Con- 
stantinople. At  this  moment  the  gorgeous  pano- 
rama that  opens  to  our  view  is  one  of  tlie  most  ex- 
traordinary that  it  is  possible  to  conceive — and  an 
attempt  to  describe  it  would  be  a  dead  failure.  A 
bay  surrounded  by  an  amphitheatre  of  hills,  rising 
one  above  another,  covered  with  buildings,  domes, 
minarets,  and  fairy  palaces,  down  to  the  water's 
edge,  intermingled  with  foliage  of  cypress  groves. 
The  harbor  is  filled  with  ships,  steamers,  and  caiques, 
(pleasure-boats,)  skimming  about  in  all  directions. 
The  scene  is  not  surpassed  in  the  world.  "We  stand 
upon  the  deck  of  our  steamer  and  take  a  protracted 
view,  drinking  in  the  beauty  around  us.  Get  into 
a  caique  and  are  rowed  to  the  shore,  and  find  our- 
selves actually  in  the  city  of  Stamboul.  It  is  well 
that  we  took  a  lingering  look  at  the  city  before 
lauding,  for  the  poetry  vanishes  immediately,  as  we 
start  up  the  steep,  narrow,  muddy  street,  in  search 
of  a  hotel.  The  contrast  is  even  greater  than  being 
transported  from  the  Fifth  Avenue  to  the  most  filthy 
alley  in  Five  Points. 

But  as  we  design  only  to  take  a  bird's-eye  view 
of  the  cities  we  visit,  we  must  hurrv  through  Con- 
stantinople  in  high -pressure  style.  We  first  call 
upon  our  clever  American  Minister,  Mr.  Williams, 
who  kindly  receives  us,  and  gives  us  a  clue  to  the 
"ropes"  of  the  city.  There  are  nearly  three  hun- 
dred mosques  here,  but  we  only  visit  a  few  of  the 
most  noted,  going  first,  of  course,  to  the  Mosque  of 
St.  Sophia,  the  largest  and  most  noted,  having  once 


352  hal's  travels. 

been  a  Christian  cliurch,  built  by  Emperor  Constan- 
tine.  Christians  are  only  admitted  into  this  mosque 
by  special  firman  from  the  Grand  Yizier,  which  we 
obtain  through  much  tribulation  and  large  "  back- 
sheesh." After  the  mosques  and  the  tombs  of  the 
Sultans,  we  visit  the  celebrated  palace  and  gardens 
of  the  Seraglio,  a  faithful  description  of  which 
might  possibly  interest  you ;  but  you  must  seek  it 
elsewhere.  We  next  take  a  caique  and  make  an 
excursion  of  many  miles  up  the  Golden  Horn,  amid 
scenes  that  can  be  properly  called  nothing  but  fairy- 
like. Then  we  charter  a  diminutive  steamer  and 
steam  up  the  Bosphorus,  and  take  a  look  at  the 
stormy  waters  of  the  Black  Sea.  The  scenery  along 
the  w^ay  is  as  grand  as  it  is  beautiful.  A  great  many 
graceful  palaces  dot  the  shores  of  the  Bosphorus. 
The  rest  of  our  time  we  spend  in  wandering  pro- 
miscuously about  the  city,  through  streets  that  are 
as  filthy  as  they  are  narrow,  and  as  crooked  as  they 
know  how  to  be.  There  are  many  open  spaces  and 
squares,  however,  to  relieve  the  monotony,  and 
fountains  are  innumerable.  The  bazaars  are  rich 
and  gorgeous  beyond  description,  and  are  as  nume- 
rous as  they  are  rich ;  for  all  the  business  of  Con- 
stantinople is  transacted  in  these  bazaars.  It  is  said 
that  an  honest  trader  has  never  yet  been  found  in 
one  of  them  ;  and  our  experience  has  not  been  such 
as  to  make  us  discredit  the  assertion.  Villains  all, 
we  believe  them  to  be,  but  still  we  love  to  linger 
among  them ;  for  in  these  bazaars  we  see  much  to 
amuse  us.    Every  trade  has  its  particular  quarter. 


hal's    travels.  353 

In  one  street  nothing  is  seen  bnt  arms  and  "weapons 
of  different  descriptions ;  another  is  filled  with 
jewels,  diamonds,  and  precions  stones ;  some  are 
lined  with  the  costly  goods  of  India,  while  nnmbers 
of  streets  are  occupied  by  shoemakers,  cooks,  con- 
fectioners, etc.,  each  being  confined  to  a  distinct 
district.  The  difierent  trades  are  appropriated  to 
difl'erent  nations,  and  each  dresses  in  the  costume 
of  his  country :  the  Armenians,  with  their  huge 
black  caps;  the  Turks,  with  their  immense  tur- 
bans ;  the  Persians,  with  their  high  conical  sheep- 
skin caps ;  the  Greeks,  with  their  long  red  tar- 
bouches  hanging  gracefully  on  one  shoulder;  then 
the  passengers  in  every  costume — Turks,  Albanians, 
Egyptians,  Circassians,  Greeks,  merchants,  sheiks, 
dervishes,  slaves,  water-sellers,  and  occasionally  a 
European  or  American,  in  a  trim  black  coat  and  a 
two-stor}^  stove-pipe  hat,  looking  altogether  out  of 
place — all  these  give  a  motley  yet  picturesque 
appearance  to  the  bazaars.  And  not  the  least  at- 
traction here  is  the  great  number  of  Turkish  wo- 
men, pushing  along  through  the  crowd,  and  peeping 
roguishly  at  us  from  under  their  thin  veils.  Beware 
of  them ;  for,  in  their  intense  curiosity,  they  may 
pick  your  pockets. 

But  a  few  days'  rambling  must  satisfy  us  with 
Constantinople.  We  are  anxious  to  hasten  on  to  a 
country  where  there  is  less  thieving  and  more  civil- 
ization. "We  go  aboard  the  fine  French  steamer 
"Carmel,"  and  take  a  last  look  at  the  fairest  city 
upon  earth,  (but  very  like  a  whited  sepulchre,) 
12 


354  iial's  travels. 

and  set  sail  for  Athens,  leaving,  with  much  regret, 
our  knowing  friend  Boots.  In  due  course  of  time, 
and  the  usual  amount  of  sea- sickness — for  the 
weather  is  rough — we  arrive  at  Pirseus,  the  port  of 
Athens.  Lauding  from  the  steamer,  we  take  car- 
riages and  drive  up  one  of  the  most  lovely  vales  we 
ever  looked  upon,  surrounded  by  classic  mountains, 
so  grouped  as  to  form  a  landscape  surpassed  by 
none.  We  whirl  rapidly  up  the  broad  road  five 
miles,  and  in  little  more  than  one  hour  we  are 
standing  upon  the  Acropolis,  amid  the  ruins  of  the 
great  Parthenon.  A  more  lovely  day  never  dawned, 
and  the  scene  around  us  is  perfectly  enchanting. 
"We  know  not  which  to  admire  most — the  landscape 
around,  or  the  massive  yet  graceful  ruins  amid 
which  we  stand.  We  glance  alternately  at  one  and 
the  other,  and  then  look  dowu  upon  the  neat,  clean- 
looking  modern  city  at  our  feet.  The  lovely  plain 
of  Attica  lies  before  us,  dotted  with  vineyards  and 
olive-groves,  and  surrounded  with  the  picturesque 
and  the  beautifully  tinted  mounts  of  Parnes,  Pen- 
telicus,  Hymettus,  ^galoos.  The  south  is  open 
to  the  sea — the  Gulf  of  Salamis.  It  is  hard  indeed 
to  take  our  gaze  from  the  delightful  prospect,  seem- 
ingly more  harmonious  and  pleasant  to  look  upon 
than  any  we  have  before  seen.  After  gazing  long, 
however,  we  turn  to  the  ruins,  and  grope  amid 
scenes  of  fallen  splendor  till  we  are  weary  with 
walking.  You  have  no  doubt  often  read  descrip- 
tions of  the  great  Athenian  temples,  and  it  would 
be  but  a  waste  of  time  for  me  to  attempt  it.     We 


hal's  travels.  355 

find  the  I'artlieuon  and  the  Erectheum  in  a  more 
ruinous  state  than  we  expected ;  but  the  Temple  of 
Theseus  we  find  almost  perfect,  and  one  of  the  most 
graceful  buildings  we  ever  saw.  It  is  filled  with 
broken  statues  and  works  of  art,  found  by  the 
modern  Athenians  in  their  excavations.  Of  the 
Temple  of  Jupiter  Olympus  nothing  now  remains 
but  some  twenty  or  thirty  columns,  very  massive, 
and  adorned  with  highly-wrought  capitals.  We 
visit  the  Amphitheatre  of  Herodes,  the  Prison  and 
Tomb  of  Socrates,  and  many  other  places  of  inte- 
rest to  the  reader  of  Athenian  history. 

One  place  we  visit  with  feelings  of  more  than 
ordinary  interest.  It  is  Mars  Hill,  on  the  top 
of  which  the  great  Apostle  of  the  Gentiles  once 
stood  and  delivered  a  stump  speech  that  will  be 
read  and  remembered  as  long  as  time  shall  last. 
We  sit  down  upon  the  very  spot  and  read  a  report 
of  that  speech,  which  we  find  in  the  seventeenth 
chapter  of  Acts.  This  little  hill  stands  just  between 
the  temples  of  the  Parthenon  and  Theseus,  and  is 
an  admirable  place  from  which  to  address  a  large 
audience — and  methinks  the  speaker  had  a  large 
audience  that  day — "  for  all  the  Athenians  and 
strangers  which  were  there  spent  their  time  in 
nothing  else  but  either  to  tell  or  hear  some  new 
thing."  We  can  imagine  that  we  almost  see  those 
philosophers  of  Epicureans  and  Stoics,  as  thej^  came 
forward  and  sneeringly  asked,  "What  will  this  bab- 
bler say  ?"  Then  Paul  proudly  arose  and  stood  "  in 
the  midst  of  Mars  Ilill,"  and  told  the  proud  Athen- 


356  hal's  travels. 

ians  of  tlieir  ignorance  and  superstition  ;  and  point- 
ing up  to  the  gorgeous  temple  of  the  Acropolis,  we 
can  almost  still  hear  his  words  ringing  in  the  quiet 
air  as  he  said,  "  God  that  made  the  world,  and  all 
things  therein,  seeing  that  he  is  Lord  of  heaven  and 
earth,  dwelleth  not  in  temples  made  loith  hands!" 
But,  as  might  have  been  expected,  some  of  those 
philosophers  mocked  when  they  heard  the  sermon. 
Some  of  the  same  sort  live  at  the  present  day,  and 
would  no  doubt  mock  if  Paul  were  to  return  to 
earth  and  preach  as  he  then  preached. 

But  we  must  leave  Athens.  This  document  is 
already  getting  lengthy,  but  we  are  bound  to  make 
it  carry  us  to  Paris.  We  go  through  the  modern 
city  of  Athens,  and  are  much  pleased  with  the 
beaut}'^  and  cleanliness  of  the  new  part,  but  the 
older  part  is  horrible.  The  palace  of  King  Otho  is 
a  tasteful  but  not  a  gorgeous  building.  We  go 
through  the  King's  gardens  and  gather  a  bouquet 
of  flowers,  but  as  neither  King  Otho  nor  Queen  Otho 
are  at  home,  we  do  not  call  at  the  palace.  Rev.  Dr. 
King,  the  high-standing  and  popular  American  mis- 
sionary and  teacher,  is  our  guide  through  the  city, 
to  whom  we  return  many  thanks.  Athens  contains 
a  population  of  about  fifty  thousand. 

We  are  oft'  again  on  the  bounding  billows,  and, 
after  doubling.Cape  Matapan,  see  no  more  land  until 
we  strike  the  coast  of  Italy,  and  enter  the  Strait  of 
Messina,  when  we  "  fetch  a  compass  and  sail  to 
Rhegium,"  and  thence  to  the  city  of  Messina, 
which  we  find  in  a  terrible  state  of  confusion,  the 


hal's  travels.  357 

place  being  in  a  state  of  revolt,  and  tlie  soldiers 
having  possession  of  the  city.  It  is  with  much  diffi- 
culty we  get  permission  to  land,  the  government 
being  terribly  alarmed  on  account  of  a  rumor  that 
Garibaldi  is  coming  down  upon  them  with  filli- 
busters.  Our  Consul  finally  gets  permission,  how- 
ever, and  we  go  ashore,  to  see  nothing  but  closed 
houses,  gaping  cannon  in  the  streets,  and  myriads 
of  soldiers  swaggering  about,  ready  to  cut  down 
any  defenceless  citizen  who  may  chance  to  look 
like  a  revolutionist. 

A  short  visit  satisfies  us  wdth  Messina,  pretty  as 
it  is,  and  we  return  to  our  steamer,  and,  steering 
clear  of  both  Scylla  and  Charybdis,  leave  the  Strait, 
and  gain  the  open  sea,  and  are  off  for  Marseilles, 
w^hich  we  reach  in  little  more  than  two  days,  with- 
out incident,  except  two  or  three  little  storms, 
which  can  be  got  up  at  any  time  on  the  Mediter- 
ranean with  five  minutes'  notice.  Soon  after  leav- 
ing Messina  we  pass  the  mountain  and  volcano  of 
Stromboli,  whose  glowing  furnace  looks  most  bril- 
liant at  night.  We  leave  the  coasts  of  Sicily,  ex- 
pecting and  hoping  soon  to  hear  a  good  report  from 
it,  for  the  Sicilians  have  taken  a  notion  to  free  them- 
selves from  the  galling  yoke  of  tyranny  that  has  so 
long  pressed  them ;  and  if  Garibaldi  should  effect  a 
landing  with  his  daring  fillibusters,  the  work  will 
be  done — and  woe  to  the  house  of  Bourbon  !  woe  to 
the  upstart  King  of  Naples  !  Could  we  meet  with 
Garibaldi's  expedition,  we  should  be  half  inclined  to 
join  it  and  help  him  in  the  glorious  w^ork  of  freeing 


358  HAL'S     TRAVELS. 

a  downtrodden  people.  If  the  revolutionists  in 
Sicily  succeed,  Naples  will  follow — and  then  the 
powers  at  Rome  may  tremble ! 

But  we  have  no  time  to  speculate.  "We  approach 
Marseilles.  The  verdant  shores  of  France  are  before 
us.  Glorious  sight !  "We  have  longed  to  quit  the 
troubled  sea,  and  to  reach  a  land  where  order  pre- 
vails. And  here  we  are  at  last.  How  beautiful  the 
city  !  N^ot  like  the  cities  of  the  East,  only  beautiful 
from  the  sea,  but  its  elegant  houses,  broad,  clean 
streets  are  refreshing.  Marseilles,  for  elegance  and 
beauty,  is  only  second  to  Paris.  But  we  tarry  not 
here.  Paris  is  before  us,  and  two  days'  travel  will 
land  us  there,  if  we  go  straight  through  by  rail. 
But  we  must  halt  a  little  on  the  way.  We  must  see 
the  extensive  and  magnificent  remains  of  Roman 
w^orks,  especially  the  old  Amphitheatre  at  Aries. 
It  is  next  in  size  perhaps  to  the  great  Coliseum  at 
Rome.  And  it  will  not  do  to  pass  through  the 
ancient  and  important  city  of  Lyons  without  stop- 
ping. Perhaps  we  may  see  some  of  the  descend- 
ants of  the  "Lady  of  Lyons"  and  "Melnotte." 
"Who  knows  ?  But  if  we  do  not,  a  look  into  some 
of  the  great  silk  manufactories  will  pay  us  for 
stopping.  There  are  more  than  seven  thousand 
such  establishments  in  Lyons !  These  things,  in 
connection  with  the  beautiful  city,  so  well  situated 
at  the  junction  of  the  Soane  and  Rhone  rivers, 
make  it  well  worth  while  to  tarry  a  day. 

And  Fontainbleau  must  be  seen.  We  give  a  day 
to  it,  driving  through  its  extensive  forest  and  gar- 


iial's  travels.  359 

den,  and  Avalking  through  the  palace.     One  day  is 
not  satisfactory,  but  we  are  in  haste. 

Paris  at  last !  and  snugly  housed  in  the  Hotel  de 
Luxembourg,  with  my  old  friend  John  G.  to  keep 
me  company.  How  glad  I  am  to  find  him  once 
more  ! — and  now  for  a  good  long  rest. 

Smith  is  here,  Jones  is  here,  and  Miss  Kissiah  is 
here.  Brown  and  the  rest  are  dispersed — some  in 
Italy,  and  some  gone  home.  So  our  party  is  now 
clean  "busted  up."  AVe  shall  remain  here  some 
time,  for  it  will  not  do  to  leave  Paris  in  May. 

"When  I  feel  sufficiently  rested,  I  shall  perambu- 
late Paris  with  n\y  good  and  faithful  friend  Smith, 
after  which  I  may  write  you  again. 

Yours,  etc.,  Hal. 


360  HAL'S    TRAVELS. 


LETTER   XXXII. 

PARIS. 

I  HAD  intended  to  write  yon  a  letter  tliis  morn- 
ing, but  upon  reflection  have  concluded  to  write 
only  an  apology.  In  piping  times  like  these,  com- 
monplace letters  from  plodding  correspondents  are 
of  no  interest  whatever  to  the  reading  public  of  our 
country,  the  taste  of  which  has  been  wound  up  to  a 
blood-and-thunder  pitch  by  politicians,  bully  mem- 
bers of  Congress,  and  "fancy"  gentlemen  of  the 
"  ring."  It  is,  therefore,  unnecessary  for  me  to  shed 
ink  with  the  vain  hope  of  interesting  the  worthy 
people  who  have  so  many  public  interests  to  look 
after,  and  who  have  so  much  to  talk  about.  The 
world  is  in  a  ferment,  and  things  are  happening  and 
are  likely  to  happen  everywhere — especially  in  our 
own  country,  where  the  tug  of  war  is  setting  in  oif 
a  larger  scale  and  more  fiercely  than  that  of  Gari- 
baldi with  the  Neapolitan  Government.  I  am  aw- 
fully afraid  that  that  horrid  monster,  so  long  looked 
for,  and  so  often  predicted,  is  about  stalking  in  at 
last  to  frighten  our  people  into  spasms  with  his 
gaunt,  spectral  visage,  and  gory  locks.  I  mean  the 
crisis  !  The  signs  of  his  coming  are  vivid,  and  if  he 
come,  woe  be  to  the  faint-hearted  ! 


hal's  travels.  361 

But,  as  I  said  above,  I  -write  tliis  note  merely  as 
an  apology,  instead  of  a  letter,  and  to  reveal  to  you 
the  important  fact  that  I  am  on  the  point  of  leaving 
the  capital  of  His  Imperial  Highness  for  that  of  Her 
Royal  Majesty.  In  other  words,  I  have  accepted  an 
invitation  to  eat  roast-beef  and  drink  'alf-and-'alf 
with  my  English  cousins,  and  herrings  with  my 
Scotch  friends,  not  forgetting  to  call  by  and  indulge 
in  a  mess  of  "praties"  with  the  honest  Hibernians. 
In  short,  I  am  going  to  "  do"  Great  Britain.  My 
friend  John  accompanies  me. 

I  have  been  trying  to  get  my  good  friend  Smith 
to  go,  but  can't.  He  is  willing  enough  to  go  him- 
self, and  anxious,  but  the  ]\Iadam  says  she  is  not 
through  with  Paris  yet.  Smith  groans  in  spirit,  and 
submits,  but  says  he  cannot  hold  out  much  longer. 
Mrs.  S.  goes  shopping  "  at  all  hours  of  the  day  and 
in  all  kinds  of  weather,"  and  has  bought  more  goods 
than  poor  Flora  McFlimsey  ever  dreamed  of.  Smith 
says  the  expenditures  of  his  wife  are  intolerable. 
But  still  he  submits.  A  daj'  or  two  ago  the  Madam 
announced  her  readiness  to  leave,  whereat  the  old 
gentleman  was  in  ecstasies,  and  came  and  informed 
me  of  the  decision  with  a  beaming  face.  But  an 
hour  after,  the  decision  was  revoked.  She  has  now 
determined  to  stay  till  after  the  funeral  which  she 
feels  confident  will  come  off  in  a  few  da3^s.  Prince 
Jerome  is  very  ill,  and  is  expected  every  da}'  to  die. 
She  wants  to  witness  the  grand  funeral  pomp,  which 
she  thinks  will  be  one  of  the  most  imposing  cere- 
monies ever  got  up  in  Paris.     She  has  a  passion  for 


362  hal's  travels. 

grand  spectacles.  (My  private  opinion  is  that  it  is 
more  of  a  passion  for  the  company  of  Major  Fitz- 
doodle  than  any  thing  else  that  keeps  Mrs.  S.  in 
Paris  ;  but  Smith  must  not  know  this.) 

I  regret  leaving  my  good  and  faithful  old  friend; 
and  I  verily  believe  he  is  sorry  to  part  with  me ;  but 
the  parting  must  come.  We  have  roamed  the  streets 
of  Paris  both  by  day  and  night  for  several  weeks  to- 
gether— in  fact,  we  have  been  together  daily  for 
months  past :  what  wonder,  then,  that  we  should  part 
in  sorrow  ? 

Latterly  the  old  gentleman  goes  to  the  circus  al- 
most every  night,  while  the  Madam  goes  to  the 
opera  with  Major  Fitzdoodle.  She  will  not  go  to 
the  circus  because  she  considers  it  "low,"  but  is 
willing,  and  even  anxious,  for  her  "kind  and  oblig- 
ing" husband  to  go  there.  Smith  says  he  don't 
care  a  "  cuss"  for  the  circus,  but  he  feels  certain 
that  the  fellow  who  performs  upon  the  slackrope 
will  break  his  neck  some  night,  and  he  is  anxious 
"to  be  in  at  the  death." 

Paris  is  very  gay  at  this  time,  and  is  a  hard  place 
to  leave.  But  this  is  "the  season"  in  London  also. 
"We  go  by  the  Isle  of  Wight,  where  Her  Majest}^  is 
sojourning  at  this  time. 

The  Emperor  review^ed  his  troops  in  the  Bois  de 
Boulogne  a  few  days  ago,  assisted  in  the  arduous 
duty  by  the  Empress  and  the  little  Prince.  It  was 
a  brilliant  spectacle.  In  returning  from  the  review, 
Mr.  Smith  and  myself  had  the  honor  of  riding  near 
the  Emperor  for  a  mile  or  more,  and,  as  we  rode  in 


hal's  travels.  363 

a  slow  walk,  had  an  excellent  opportunity  of  enter- 
ing into  a  conversation  with  His  Grace — ^but  we 
did  n't.  We  took  off  our  hats  to  him,  and  he  took 
off  his  hat  to  us ;  hut,  like  a  modest  man  that  he  is, 
he  said  nothing. 

But  I  must  close  and  pack  up  my  duds,  for  I  leave 
for  Havre,  etc.,  at  12  o'clock.     Good-bye. 

Hal. 

P.  S. — My  friend  Smith  has  just  been  in  to  un- 
bosom himself  to  me.  He  informs  me  with  a  very 
long  face  that  Mrs.  Smith  has  gone  and  bought  a 
monkey,  and  has  dressed  it  up  in  a  suit  of  clothes 
just  like  his.  He  is  terribly  distressed,  and  swears 
roundly  that  he  will  not  stay  in  Paris  three  days 
longer.  He  was  somewhat  put  out  when  his  wife 
bought  the  poodle  dog,  but  the  monkey  has  almost 
filled  the  cup  of  his  patience.  H. 


364  hal's   travels. 


LETTER  XXXIII. 

PARIS      TO      LONDON. 

I  SENT  you  a  brief  apology  from  Paris  last  week 
instead  of  a  letter.  You  may  think  you  are  going 
to  get  off  again  as  easily.  But  don't  flatter  your- 
self. I  feel  rather  desperate  to-da^^  and  shall  bore 
you  just  as  long  as  I  please.  This  is  a  real  London 
day — dark,  chilly,  damp,  and  smoky — and  as  I  can- 
not go  out  to  see  the  sights  of  the  great  metropolis, 
I  must  let  off  steam  by  inflicting  upon  you  a  most 
burdensome  document. 

On  the  same  day  I  wrote  you  last,  I  bade  fare- 
well to  Paris  and  my  friends  there — especially  the 
Smiths — and  John  and  myself  made  tracks,  on  the 
rail,  for  Havre,  tarrying  long  enough  by  the  way  to 
take  a  bird's-eye  view  of  the  ancient  and  classic  city 
of  Rouen,  where  relics  of  antiquity  meet  the  eye  at 
every  turn,  and  where  stands  a  statue  of  Joan 
of  Arc.  Arriving  at  the  great  commercial  city 
of  Havre — "  the  Liverpool  of  France" — we,  for  the 
last  time,  before  embarking  for  a  land  of  freedom, 
went  through  the  nonsensical  ceremony  of  having 
our  passports  overhauled  and  vised.      Then,  after 


HAL'S    TRAVELS.  365 

partaking  of  an  enormous  beefsteak,  and  a  quantity 
of  claret,  we  sallied  out  and  took  a  look  at  the  quaintly 
built  and  eminently  French  -  looking  city;  after 
which  we  deposited  ourselves  at  midnight  on  a 
couple  of  shelves  (called  berths  by  courtesy)  on 
board  the  little  wheezing  steamer  that  plies  between 
Havre  and  Southampton.  These  shelves  are  said 
to  have  been  made  to  sleep  on.  That  may  be,  but 
the  individual  must  have  a  copper-lined  stomach 
who  can  sleep  on  such  a  sea  as  we  passed  over  that 
night.  The  little  steamer  heaved  and  set  all  night 
long — and  the  great  load  of  passengers  did  likewise, 
until  we  arrived  in  the  quiet  waters  of  Southampton 
ba}^  at  nine  o'clock  the  following  morning.  I  never 
saw  people  "cast  up  accounts"  (that's  quoted  from 
Smith)  with  more  earnestness  than  did  that  squad 
of  passengers.  Tartar -emetic  is  a  mere  circum- 
stance to  a  troubled  sea.  So,  landlubbers,  take 
warning. 

Having  arrived  at  Southampton,  we  made  all 
haste  to  get  away  from  it,  for  it  is  not  a  place  for 
one  to  hanker  after,  particularly  in  bad  weather; 
besides,  we  were  greeted  on  every  hand  with  that 
vulgar  vernacular,  the  English  language.  Every- 
body spoke  English,  and  we  found  our  French, 
which  we  had  acquired  with  so  much  laboi-,  utterly 
useless.  It  was  downright  shocking,  and  strange 
as  it  was  shocking,  to  hear  great  round  oaths  rolled 
out  in  English,  after  having  been  deprived  of  such 
a  luxury  for  nearly  a  year.  You  have  little  idea 
how   strange   it   seems    to   hear   everybody   speak 


366  hal's   travels. 

English,  after  the  ear  has  been  so  long  accustomed 
to  different  sounds. 

Leaving  Southampton,  we  whizzed  through  a 
portion  of,  perhaps,  the  best-improved  and  best-cul- 
tivated country  on  earth,  and  about  two  o'clock 
found  ourselves  enveloped  in  a  dark  mist,  and 
almost  suffocated  with  coal-smoke.  And  this,  if 
nothing  else,  would  have  told  us  that  we  were  enter- 
ing London.  Its  horrible  smell,  dark  smoked 
houses,  and  crowded  streets,  were  the  same  that  we 
had  left  them  months  and  months  before. 

And  so,  here  we  have  been  now  for  six  days — and 
if  I  were  to  tell  you  that  we  had  good  weather  for 
one-sixth  of  the  time,  you  might  well  doubt  the 
stor3^  It  has  rained  twice  since  I  commenced  this 
letter,  (and  I  am  not  a  slow  writer,)  and  at  the  pre- 
sent moment  it  looks  like  we  are  going  to  have  a 
storm.  It  would  be  but  little  exaggeration  to  say 
that  this  is  the  character  of  the  weather  we  have 
had  all  the  time.  If  it  be  thus  in  June,  what  must 
it  be  in  winter  ? 

Such  being  the  character  of  the  weather,  I  can't 
say  that  we  have  enjoj^ed  London  to  an  enormous 
extent,  although  we  have  been  pretty  constantly  on 
the  pad.  Between  showers  we  frequently  employ 
the  time  in  looking  at  Loudon  and  its  masses  of 
humanity  from  the  top  of  an  omnibus.  One  day 
we  found  it  dry  enough  to  visit  the  Royal  Zoologi- 
cal Gardens,  which  paid  very  well,  for  we  there  saw 
animals,  birds,  reptiles,  and  fishes  from  all  lands  and 
all  waters.     Another  day,  when  it  was  raining,  we 


HAL    S    TRAVELS.  367 

had  ourselves  shown  through  the  Bank  of  Enghand, 
the  greatest  institution  of  tlie  kind  in  the  world. 
It  covers  four  acres  of  ground,  and  employs  a  thou- 
sand clerks,  etc.  Between  two  and  three  million 
dollars  in  notes  are  cancelled  there  daily.  Wq  were 
politely  shown  through  all  the  departments,  and  the 
stories  told  us  ahout  the  amount  of  business  trans- 
acted in  each  were  so  enormous  that  I  have  not 
been  able  to  retain  them  in  my  liead.  I  remember 
one  thing,  however:  In  the  printing  department 
we  were  told  that  six  hundred  reams  of  paper  were 
used  per  month  to  print  bank-notes  upon  !  In  one 
room  a  gentleman  placed  in  my  hand  a  bundle  of 
notes  which  he  said  contained  two  millions  and  a 
half.  The  bundle  was  not  large  nor  heavy,  but  the 
same  amount  in  gold  would  have  loaded  several 
wagons.     (The  threatened  storm  is  upon  us  !) 

Thursday  morning  last  was  dark  and  lowering  as 
usual,  but  John  and  myself  determined  to  get  the 
soot  and  cobwebs  from  our  throats  and  lungs  by 
breathing  a  little  pure  air.  The  Ascot  races  were 
going  on  some  twenty-five  miles  from  the  city,  and 
Thursday  being  the  big  day,  there  w^e  determined 
to  go  and  witness  the  sports  of  an  English  turf. 
These  races  are  patronized  by  the  Queen,  and 
Thursday  is  called  the  "Queen's  Day."  A7e  went, 
(it  is  but  little  more  than  an  hour's  ride  by  railway,) 
and,  although  it  was  a  showery  day,  everybody  and 
all  their  families  seemed  to  be  present.  Hundreds 
of  temporary  booths  were  reared  on  every  hand  for 
the  sale  of  refreshments — principally  beef,  beer,  and 


368  hal's  travels. 

cakes — and  John  Bull  did  liis  whole  duty  in  the 
way  of  eating  and  drinking.  The  racing  was 
spirited,  and  so  was  the  betting.  The  finest  horses 
of  the  kingdom,  and  the  noble  patrons  of  the  turf, 
were  all  there.  Upon  the  whole,  it  was  a  very  gay 
scene.  A  little  after  twelve  o'clock  the  Queen  and 
all  the  royal  family,  accompanied  by  many  noble 
foreigners,  arrived  on  the  ground,  in  a  procession 
of  fourteen  fine  carriages  and  a  numerous  host  of 
outriders  in  the  most  brilliant  uniform.  Their 
Royal  Highnesses  were  received  with  shouts  of  wel- 
come, loud  and  long — for  these  English  people  love 
their  good  little  Queen  very  much.  She  acknow- 
ledged the  welcome  with  graceful  bows  and  waves 
of  her  hand,  after  which  she  took  her  place  in  the 
royal  stand,  where  we  could  all  see  and  admire  her 
as  much  as  we  pleased.  She  is  a  dumpy  little  body, 
but,  according  to  my  taste,  has  a  remarkably  sweet, 
pleasant  face — more  rounded  and  fleshy  than  I  ex- 
pected to  see — decidedly  blooming  and  healthy — 
which  is  a  great  blessing  to  her  people,  for  if  she 
were  a  pale,  delicate-looking  woman,  the  Euglish 
ladies  would  ruin  their  health  trying  to  look  like 
her.  She  was  dressed  like  any  other  lady,  in  plain 
black,  with  a  white  bonnet,  not  gorgeously  trimmed. 
Prince  Albert  is  a  fine-looking  man,  but  begins  to 
show  age  a  little.  I  thought  the  Prince  of  Wales 
looked  rather  verdant  for  a  young  man  of  his 
advantages.  The  little  ones  of  the  Eoyal  Family 
all  had  clean  faces,  and  looked  as  neat  as  if  they 
had  just  popped  out  of  the  bandbox. 


hal's   travels.  369 

Up  to  the  time  of  the  Queen's  arrival,  the  racing 
had  been  of  minor  importance ;  but  then  the  cele- 
brated horses  were  brought  out,  and  the  great  races 
of  the  day  commenced.  Five,  seven,  eight,  nine, 
and,  in  one  race,  fourteen  horses  were  started. 
Tlie  people  became  frantic,  and  for  a  time  seemed 
unable  to  hold  themselves  upon  the  ground.  Even 
royalty  itself  stood  on  tiptoe,  until  the  result  of  the 
latter  race  was  announced,  and  then  the  air  was 
rent  with  yells  that  would  have  aroused  the  envy  of 
any  savage ;  and  if  throats  were  not  rent,  it  was  not 
for  want  of  an  efibrt  Don't  understand  me  to  say 
that  everybody  yelled.  Far  from  it:  some  were 
sad  enough ;  for  some  were  hundreds,  and  some 
thousands  of  pounds  poorer  than  when  they  arrived 
on  the  race-course. 

The  great  race  being  over,  the  royal  family  re- 
tired, and  so  did  we,  and  reached  London  in  time 
to  take  our  six  o'clock  dinner  of  roast-beef  and 
brown-stout. 

Horse-racing  is  a  national  institution  in  England. 
So  is  foot-racing,  jumping,  lifting,  wrestling,  etc. 
Consequently  there  arc  more  fine  horses,  and  more 
stout,  healthy-looking  men,  than  I  have  found  in 
any  other  country,  except  it  be  some  parts  of  Ger- 
many, where  manly  sports  are  a  pastime.  The 
French  are  not  near  so  stout  or  fine-looking  as  the 
English,  and  the  Italians  are  pigmies  in  comparison. 
The  Arabs,  with  few  exceptions,  are  contemptible 
specimens  of  humanity,  and  the  Turks  are  little  if 
any  better.     Americans,  in  appearance,  occupy  a 


370  hal's   travels. 

medium  place  between  the  Englisli  and  French,  ap- 
proaching perhaps  nearer  the  latter  than  the  former 
standard.  Perhaps  it  may  be,  in  part,  owing  to  the 
immense  amount  of  beer  that  is  swilled  by  the  Ger- 
mans and  English,  that  gives  them  their  superior 
portly  appearance. 

Since  the  races,  we  have  been  circulating  at  ran- 
dom in  the  parks,  on  Regent  street,  Piccadilly,  in 
the  Strand,  and  steaming  it  up  and  down  the 
Thames.  Nights  we  spend  variously :  one  night  to 
the  opera,  another  to  the  Haymarket  Theatre,  an- 
other to  the  Adelphi,  to  see  the  performance  of  a 
first-rate  play,  called,  "  Our  Female  American  Cou- 
sin," which  is  done  up  to  admiration  by  Miss  Daly ; 
then  we  go  to  the  Royal  Prince's  Theatre,  to  see 
Richelieu  and  Pauline,  and  again  to  see  the  Christy 
Minstrels,  who  are  doing  a  smashing  business  in  a 
very  poor  way.  They  sing  the  oldest  songs,  play 
the  oldest  tricks,  and  get  off  the  most  stale 
and  contemptible  jokes  and  conundrums  that  you 
can  imagine.  But  the  people  laugh  and  applaud, 
and  that  is  sufficient.  A  joke  or  conundrum  that 
■would  be  hissed  in  Huntsville,  will  ".bring  down 
the  house"  here.  After  seeing  the  Christy s  once,  I 
must  say  that  negro-shows  are  degenerating.  Their 
plantation  melodies  and  dances,  as  sung  and  danced 
in  London,  are  about  as  true  to  nature  as  the  Demo- 
cratic party  is  to  its  pledges. 

Yesterday  (Sunday)  we  went  to  Exeter  Hall,  to 
hear  the  big  gun,  Spurgeon ;  but  the  big  gun  had 
"gone  oftV  and  we  didn't  hear  him.     We  heard  a 


iial's   travels.  371 

good  sermon,  nevertheless.  A  Mr.  Northrup, 
from  the  United  States,  (I  don't  know  what  part,) 
did  what  he  could  towards  filling  the  pulpit  of  the 
big  gun.  I  expected  a  "flash,"  but  was  agreeably 
disappointed.  He  preached  an  excellent  sermon ; 
one  that,  had  it  been  from  Spurgeon,  would  have 
been  considered  one  of  his  best.  But  it  was  not 
Spurgeon,  and  therefore  many  excellent  people  were 
sadly  disappointed.  It  was  a  good,  old-fashioned, 
plain  sermon ;  and  I  liked  it,  because  it  reminded 
me  of  some  that  I  had  heard  from  board  pulpits  in 
the  woods,  long,  long  ago,  when  people  used  to 
come  together  and  pitch  their  tents  in  the  cool 
shady  groves,  and  worship  God  beside  some  silent 
stream,  or  bubbling  fountain.  Mr.  Northrup  is  a 
good  preacher,  be  he  whom  or  what  he  may,  or 
where  from.  lie  is  drawing  great  crowds  here,  and 
is,  I  doubt  not,  doing  good.  Success  to  him,  and 
all  who  preach  simple  truth  ! 

To-day  we  shall  call  upon  our  Minister,  Mr. 
Dallas,  to  get  tickets,  and  to-morrow  shall  visit  the 
two  Houses  of  Parliament.  The  day  after,  we  go 
to  Sydenham,  to  visit  the  Cr3'stal  Palace.  Then  wo 
must  go  to  Hampton  Court,  and  many  other  places 
of  interest  in  and  about  London.  Then  ho  !  for 
other  parts!  Isle  of  Wight,  Stratford -on -Avon, 
Kcnihvorth,  etc.,  etc.,  etc.,  etc.  And  some  time, 
when  we  get  tired  of  seeing,  we  shall  call  and  see 
you  all — perhaps. 

I  was  thinking,  a  day  or  two  ago,  that  I  ought  to 
have  written  you  a  letter  or  two  from  Paris,  giving 


372  hal's   travels. 

an  account  of  what  I  saw  and  enjoyed  in  that  city. 
But  then  perhaps  it  was  more  merciful  in  me  to 
spare  you  ;  for  I  could  have  written  you  nothing 
but  a  batch  of  such  stuff  as  this.  I  saw  nothing 
particularly  new.  Spent  my  time  in  the  most  use- 
less way — dodging  in  here  and  out  there,  popping 
up  here  and  down  there ;  bobbing  around  generally, 
as  much  pleased  with  ever}^  thing  I  saw  as  a  child  at 
a  Punch  and  Judy  show.  Lounged  in  the  Garden 
of  the  Tuileries,  watching  the  gay  and  giddy 
throngs  of  men,  women,  and  happy  children ; 
strolled  through  the  galleries,  and  admired  the 
pictures  of  the  old  masters,  as  well  as  the  sculpture. 
And  then  I  walked  the  most  gay  and  beautiful  of 
all  thoroughfares — Champs  Elysees,  admiring  the 
jfine  equipages,  the  beautiful  women,  and  the  fine 
store-goods  they  carried  on  their  graceful  persons ; 
also  the  Rue  de  Rivoli,  and  the  Boulevards  ;  staring 
in  at  the  brilliant  shop-windows,  the  like  of  which 
is  to  be  seen  nowhere  but  in  Paris.  Then,  often 
the  afternoon  would  find  me  in  the  Bois  de  Bou- 
logne, (the  finest  park  I  ever  saw,)  where  everybody 
goes  to  enjoy  themselves — to  see  each  other — to 
show  their  fine  horses,  fine  carriages,  and  fine 
clothes.  There  too  the  Emperor  and  Empress  are 
to  be  seen  almost  ever}-  pleasant  evening,  his  Impe- 
rial Highness  often  driving  his  own  horses — a  span 
of  splendid  blacks — one  gentleman  sitting  beside 
him,  and  two  on  the  back  seat.  He  dresses  as  other 
gentlemen,  and  has  no  guard.  The  Empress  seldom 
rides  with  the  Emperor,  but  in  her  own  carriage, 


iial's  travels.  378 

with  one  or  two  ladies  of  the  Court.  She  is  always 
accompanied  by  a  guard  of  honor.  So  is  the  little 
Prince  Imperial,  who  also  has  his  own  carriage.  I 
have  seen  the  Emperor  on  horseback,  and  little 
Prince  on  a  little  white  pony  beside  him.  He  is  a 
remarkable  little  fellow,  to  be  little  over  four  years 
old.     He  rides  his  pony  in  a  lope. 

When  looking  at  Napoleon  III.,  like  my  sensible 
friend  Smith,  I  thought  it  something  even  to  see  a 
man  who  is  destined  to  fill  as  many  pages  of  his- 
tory as  any  man  who  has  preceded  him — a  man  who 
is  emphatically  making  history.  I  am  persuaded  that 
he  is  the  greatest  man  living,  if  not  the  greatest  man 
who  ever  lived.  When  ho  speaks  a  word,  it  is  re- 
peated oftener,  goes  farther,  and  more  importance 
is  attached  to  it  than  the  word  of  any  other  man. 
And  I  doubt  if  the  man  ever  lived  whose  word  in- 
fluenced the  world  as  does  that  of  the  Emperor  of 
the  French.  He  says  little,  but  he  does  a  great  deal. 
Like  a  truly  great  man,  he  is  even  great  in  little 
things.  While  managing  his  own  great  empire,  and 
at  the  same  time  looking  over  the  affairs  of  the  other 
nations  of  Europe,  he  neglects  not  the  smaller  mat- 
ters. He  has  works  of  public  improvement  going 
on  in  every  part  of  France — canals,  railroads,  turn- 
pikes, and  public  buildings ;  he  encourages  agricul- 
ture, horticulture,  and  mechanics  ;  has  an  eye  to  the 
public  schools,  and  patronizes  the  fine  arts,  nor  does 
he  neglect  science ;  gets  up  fairs  in  every  section 
of  the  country  for  the  exhibition  of  every  species 
of  industr}-,  and  awards  munificent  prizes.      He 


374  hal's  travels. 

knows  the  healthful  influence  of  public  promenades, 
places  of  resort,  fetes,  and  amusements  for  the  peo- 
ple, and  provides  them.  Under  his  guidance  the 
police  regulations  approach  very  nearly  perfection, 
and  you  will  as  vainly  look  for  riot  and  disorder  in 
a  French  city,  as  for  sobriety  and  decency  at  a  New 
York  election.  Order,  cleanliness,  and  industry  are 
visible  everywhere  in  France.  In  short,  Emperor 
Kapoleon  seems  to  have  an  eye  to  and  to  promote 
every  thing  calculated  to  advance  his  people,  be  it 
small  or  great.  His  great  mind  seems  to  compre- 
hend all,  for  while  he  conducts  minor  matters,  he 
commands  his  armies  and  his  navy,  and  has  but 
to  shake  his  finger  to  make  proud  nations  tremble 
before  him  !  Who  but  Louis  JSTapoleon  could  have 
taken  the  mass  of  vagabonds  and  fierce  red  republi- 
cans, such  as  the  French  people  were  a  few  years 
ago,  and  made  such  a  people  and  such  a  govern- 
ment !  I  doubt  if  the  man  lives  who  could  have 
done  so  much.  Happy  indeed  is  it  for  the  French 
people,  and  for  the  world,  that  a  man  with  such  a 
mind  and  such  vast  power  is  disposed  to  do  right. 

But  where  am  I  running  to  ?  I  did  not  intend  to 
say  so  much  about  the  French  Emperor,  much  as  I 
admire  him.     Hope  you  will  excuse  it. 

When  I  left  Paris  I  expected  (or  at  least  hoped)  to 
have  been  joined  before  this  time  by  my  friends  Mr. 
and  Mrs.  Smith.  They  have  not  come,  nor  do  I  now 
expect  them  to  arrive  during  my  stay  in  London.  I 
have  just  received  a  letter  from  Mr.  S.  informing  me 
of  their  change  of  plan.     It  is  in  real  business 


HAL'S    TllAVELS.  8T5 

style  —  short,  aud  to  the  point.     It   runs  as   fol- 
lows : 


Friend  Hal  : — You  need  n't  expect  mo  in  London. 
Can't  come.  Sorry  to  disappoint  you,  but  can't  help 
it.  Mrs.  S.  has  changed  her  mind.  Prince  Jerome 
did  n't  die,  as  was  expected,  consequently  my  dear 
wife  will  not  be  gratified  with  the  sight  of  a  roj'al 
funeral-procession.  She  thinks  it  very  provoking. 
She  has  now  taken  a  notion  to  go  down  to  Fontain- 
bleau  instead  of  London.  The  Emperor  and  all  his 
folks  have  moved  down  there.  We  go  to-morrow. 
Major  Fitzdoodlc  goes  with  us.  (And,  privately, 
my  friend,  between  you  and  me,  I  say  d — n  ISIajor 
Fitzdoodle.)  He  is  an  upstart.  And  yet  I  don't 
know  how  to  get  rid  of  him,  unless  I  pull  his  nose. 
And  that  would  not  do,  as  it  would  wound  the  feel- 
ings of  my  dear  wafe,  for  she  thinks  the  Major  a 
very  nice  man.  And,  true,  he  has  been  very  kind 
to  her. 

The  Snob  family  leave  to-day  for  London.  You 
will  no  doubt  see  them,  as  they  intend  stopping  at 
the  same  old  place  in  Piccadilly.  I  did  hope  that 
that  young  flirt,  Julia,  would  take  the  Major  with 
her.     But  not  so. 

I  am  ghid  to  say  that  Mrs.  S.  is  growling  tired  of 
her  monkey.  Think  she  wnll  give  it  up  soon.  She 
has  now  bought  a  big  green  parrot,  and  a  most  in- 
fernal noisy  thing  it  is. 

Hope  you  will  have  a  good  time  with  the  British- 
ers.    Sorry  I  cannot  be  with  you. 


376  HAL'S    TRAVELS. 

That  cussed  fool  of  a  rope-jumper  at  the  circus 
came  very  near  breaking  his  neck  last  night. 

Respectfully  yours,  Smith. 

So,  in  all  probability,  I  shall  see  my  good  friend 
no  more.  I  shall  therefore  hurry  through  my  tra- 
vels in  the  British  Isles,  and  make  a  break  for  a 
country  where  I  can  get  corn-bread. 

"Wish  Smith  a  pleasant  sojourn  at  Fontainbleau, 
and -hope  that  something  may  turn  up  to  give  him  a 
chance  to  pull  Fitzdoodle's  nose. 

The  sun  has  now  come  out,  and  I  will  close  and 
go  out  to  enjo}'  its  pleasant  smiles. 

Yours,  etc.,  Hal. 

P.  S. — The  steamer  "  Great  Eastern"  will  sail  for 
l!^ew  York  next  Saturday.  I  would  take  passage  on 
her  but  for  a  few  reasons.  First,  I  have  not  seen 
enough  of  this  country.  Second,  John  is  afraid  to 
risk  his  life  on  the  first  voyage  of  the  monster,  and 
I  can't  leave  him.  Third,  I  understand  the  places 
are  all  taken,  and  I  could  not  get  a  berth  even  if  I 
wanted  it.  Fourth,  and  lastly,  the  great  ship  will 
cause  an  immense  sensation  when  she  reaches  Amer- 
ica, and  my  own  arrival,  I  fear,  would  be  compar- 
atively unnoticed  by  the  great  public;  and  that 
would  be  mortifying,  3'ou  know.  The  New  Yorkers, 
I  guess,  will  find  it  difficult  to  contain  themselves 
when  they  see  the  Great  Eastern  in  their  waters. 
"Wonder  if  they  have  got  their  City  Hall  rebuilt,  so 
they  can  get  up  another  bonfire,  as  in  the  case  of 
the  telegraphic  cable  ? 


nAL'S    TRAVELS.  377 

I  guess  you  read  the  papers,  and  know  what  Gari- 
baldi is  doing  ;  that  he  has  flogged  the  Koyal  Nea- 
politan troops,  and  captured  Palermo,  the  capital  of 
Sicily.  He  has  sworn  that  the  King  of  Naples  shall 
no  longer  rule  the  Sicilians,  and  has  made  a  glorious 
beginning  towards  carrying  out  his  oath.  If  he 
does  not  take  the  Bourbon  yoke  from  the  whole 
Neapolitan  kingdom,  I  shall  be  mightily  deceived. 
I  once  thought  seriously  of  going  to  Sicily,  but  when 
I  thought  of  the  intensely  hot  climate,  and  the  heat- 
ing nature  of  the  work  likely  to  be  encountered,  I 
thought  it  more  prudent  to  keep  at  a  distance.  I 
might,  if  seriously  and  urgently  requested  to  do  so, 
consent  to  die  for  my  own  country.  But  then,  to 
die  for  the  priest-worshipping,  macaroni-eating  Ita- 
lians, is  another  thing  altogether. 

But  still,  I  swing  my  cap  in  the  air,  and  cry,  "  Vive 
le  General  Garibaldi!" 

It  is  now  preparing  to  rain  again,  and  I  am 
tempted  to  write  several  more  pages,  to  kill  time. 
But  I  '11  spare  you.  H. 


378  HAL'S     TRAVELS. 


LETTER  XXXIV. 

LONDON   TO    ISLE    OF   WIGHT,    STRATFORD-ON-AVON,    ETC. 

I  AM  on  the  wing  now,  and  cannot  take  time  to 
burden  you  with  much  of  a  letter.  I  must,  how- 
ever, bring  m}- self  up  "to  the  scratch"  long  enough 
to  pen  you  a  running  account — very  brief — of  the 
incidents,  adventures,  and  experiences,  picked  up 
along  the  way  since  my  last  letter. 

Before  leaving  London,  John  and  myself  spent 
one  day  in  the  Crystal  Palace;  but  to  undertake  to 
give  an  account  of  so  huge  an  establishment  in  one 
little  letter,  would  be  downright  presumption,  not 
to  say  foolishness.  In  fact,  what  I  saw  there  is  so 
promiscuously  jumbled  and  tangled  in  my  mind, 
that  I  doubt  if  I  could  write  intelligibly  about  it.  I 
only  have  a  confused  idea  of  an  immense  building, 
stored  with  some  of  almost  every  thing  under  the 
sun.  I  have  a  dim  remembrance  of  a  thousand  little 
shops,  and  a  thousand  pretty  girls  behind  a  thousand 
little  counters,  selling  thousands  and  thousands  of 
little  trinkets  and  gimcracks  to  the  visitors;  also 
have  a  faint  impression  that  there  was  an  immense 
amount  of  machinery,  agricultural  implements,  stat- 
uary, paintings,  gardens,  fountains,  beasts,  birds, 


hal's  travels.  379 

fishes,  and  reptiles ;  wax-works,  and  specimens  of 
every  stj^le  of  architecture,  ancient  and  modern  ; 
restaurants,  beer-saloons,  and  music  in  various  parts 
of  the  establishment.  Also  have  an  idea  that  the 
building  is  made  entirely  of  iron  and  glass,  and 
think  that  something  was  said  by  somebody  about 
its  covering  nineteen  acres  of  ground — perhaps  three 
stories  high.  I  remember  that  I  did  a  most  excel- 
lent day's  work  in  the  way  of  walking  through  the 
different  departments  of  the  palace.  Blistered  feet 
impress  this  fact  vividly.  Was  decidedly  pleased 
•with  my  visit,  and  am  resolved  to  stay  a  week  next 
time  I  go. 

Another  day  we  spent  at  Windsor  Castle — the 
grand  and  magnificent  old  pile — founded  by  William 
the  Conqueror,  and  which  has  been  the  seat  of  royalty 
ever  since  his  day.  Palace  ver}-  fine,  but  not  so 
rich  as  some  in  France.  Park  very  extensive, 
stocked  with  deer  and  buffalo,  and  in  it  an  eques- 
trian statue  of  George  III.,  in  bronze — the  largest  I 
ever  saw.  Was  shown  "  Heme's  Oak,"  immortalized 
by  Shakspeare.  The  stock  of  "Merry  Wives"  is 
not  entirely  extinct,  judging  by  the  gay  and  flaunt- 
ing dresses  we  saw  flitting  about  the  lawns  of 
Windsor.  The  celebrated  Eton  College  is  at 
Windsor. 

Went  to  Exeter  Hall  one  night  in  London,  to 
hear  John  B.  Gough  deliver  himself  of  one  of  his 
thrilling  temperance  lectures.  Ho  spread  himself 
for  two  hours,  and  poured  out  more  eloquence  than 
I  ever  heard  before — presenting  figures  gaunt  and 


380  hal's   travels. 

ghastly,  such  as  made  the  hair  stand  on  end,  the 
blood  run  cold,  and  the  very  marrow  chill  in  the 
bones.  And  all  the  while  he  spoke  he  paced  his 
long  stage  from  end  to  end  like  a  chained  bear, 
looking  more  like  a  maniac  than  a  rational  being. 
Should  not  be  surprised  if  the  man  does  go  totally 
deranged,  for  he  really  seems  verging  that  way. 
Towards  the  conclusion  of  his  lecture,  when  he 
seemed  to  have  finished  the  work  of  annihilating 
the  monster  intemperance,  and  just  at  the  point 
where  he  ought  to  have  stopped,  he  travelled  con- 
siderably out  of  his  way  to  lug  in  his  abolitionism, 
and  denounced  slavery,  (stealing  the  words  of  that 
Congress  fellow,)  as  "the  sum  total  of  all  villainy." 
And  this  of  course  "brought  down  the  house,"  as 
might  be  expected  of  an  English  audience.  He 
wound  up  by  announcing  his  determination  to  go 
home  and  preach  a  crusade  against  slavery  during 
the  Presidential  canvass.  I  predict  that  John  B. 
Gough  will  be  in  the  Lunatic  Asylum  before  very 
long. 

Three  or  four  days  ago,  having  "done"  London 
as  well  as  circumstances  permitted,  we  packed  up 
our  duds,  and  with  perfectly  dry  eyes  bade  farewell 
to  our  sorrowing  landlady.  At  London  Bridge  sta- 
tion we  took  the  train,  and  a  last  look  at  the  eter- 
nalh'-befogged  and  besmoked  old  city.  Two  hours 
express  time,  through  a  country  of  rare  richness 
and  beauty,  brought  us  to  Brighton,  on  the  sea- 
coast — a  city  remarkable  as  a  place  of  fashionable 
resort  for  London  sea-bathers — and  more  remark- 


HAL'S    TRAVELS.  381 

able  as  a  resort  for  Loudon  Sabbath-breakers,  as 
you  may  judge  when  I  tell  you  that  excursion  trains 
run  between  London  and  Brighton  every  Sunday, 
carrying  passengers  at  less  than  one-fourth  the  reg- 
ular fare.  Consequently,  many  thousands  who  de- 
sire to  get  on  a  "bust,"  escape  from  the  vigilance 
of  the  city  police,  and  go  to  Brighton — provided 
they  can  raise  two-and-a-sixpence  to  pay  their  fare. 
Without  tarrying  at  Brighton,  we  hastened  on  to 
Portsmouth — two  hours  farther — where  we  desired 
very  much  to  get  a  peep  into  the  great  Government 
Dock-yard,  where  war-ships,  cannon,  and  all  sorts 
of  destructive  materials  are  turned  out.  In  this  we 
failed,  for  none  but  Her  Majesty's  faithful  subjects 
are  permitted  to  see  the  savage  preparations  there 
going  on.  We  tried  very  hard  to  look  like  regular 
beef-eating  Britons,  and  in  addressing  the  gate- 
keeper I  even  adopted  the  cockney  lingo,  telling 
tlie  faithful  guardian  that  we  were  "hanxious"  to 
see  the  "hoperation"  of  making  the"'orrid  him- 
plements"  of  war.  But  the  man  at  the  gate,  with  a 
knowing  look,  gave  us  to  understand  that  he  was 
"up  to  snuff,"  and  that  Ave  could  not  come  it  over 
him  with  our  "haitches."  Intimated  that  he  knew 
a  Yankee  as  for  as  he  could  see  him.  So,  not  being 
able  to  see  the  Dock-yard,  we  had  to  content  our- 
selves vfith  the  other  lions  of  the  town,  the  which 
we  were  kindly  shown  by  Mr.  B.,  a  gentleman  con- 
nected with  the  public  works,  and  to  whom  I  had  a 
letter  of  introduction.     We  saw  the  fine  old  man-of- 


882  hal's  travels. 

war  "Victory,"  the  game  on  which  Lord  Nelsoji  fell 
in  an  engagement  with  the  French  fleet. 

Late  in  the  evening  we  quitted  Portsmouth,  and 
on  a  little  cockle-shell  of  a  steamer  were  brought 
safely  to  Cowes,  and  here  we  have  been  luxuriating 
ever  since  in  the  beauties  of  one  of  the  most  lovely 
isles  of  the  ocean — the  gem  of  all  islands — the 
crowning  jewel  of  Great  Britain.  The  Garden  of 
Eden  could  have  been  little  fairer  than  the  Isle  of 
Wight. 

Yesterday  we  spent  the  entire  day  in  riding  about 
from  place  to  place  in  a  carriage,  visiting  Carisbrooke 
Castle,  some  old  ivy-covered  churches,  and  other  in- 
teresting spots.  To-day  we  have  made  almost  the 
complete  circuit  of  the  island  on  the  top  of  a  stage- 
coach. 

Yes,  the  stage-coach !  "Who  does  not  love  to 
travel  by  coach  ?  Ay,  but  it  is  glorious !  The 
four  large  prancing  horses — the  hugely  proportioned 
coach — the  short  pursy  driver  in  high-topped  boots, 
with  fair  round  belly,  fat  red  face,  and  two  peering 
little  eyes,  twinkling  on  each  side  of  a  big  purple 
nose,  on  which  the  delicate  gin-blossoms  are  just 
beginning  to  bloom  !  And  then  the  proud  flourish 
and  cracking  of  the  long  whip — the  "  windir\g  of  the 
mellow  horn" — the  start,  and  brisk  clatter  through 
the  village  streets,  to  the  mortal  terror  of  old  wo- 
men and  little  children,  who  scramble  out  of  the 
way,  and  look  enviously  at  us  as  we  pass !  How 
like  the  olden  time  before  the  innovation  of  the 


nAL'S     TRAVELS.  883 

railway  !  It  is  a  good  thing  to  travel  by  stage-coach 
over  these  firm,  smooth  English  roads  !  I  was  hon- 
ored with  a  seat  on  the  box  by  the  side  of  our 
dumpy  little  driver,  whom  I  soon  found  to  be  a  very 
knowing  man,  and  not  at  all  disposed  to  hide  his 
light  under  a  bushel,  lie  had  imbibed  a  sufficient 
number  of  "horns"  to  make  him  "mellow,"  and  was 
therefore  in  a  capital  humor  for  imparting  just  such 
information  as  I  desired.  lie  knew  the  island  per- 
fectly, and  could  tell  the  history  of  every  old  church, 
castle,  and  ruin  upon  it.  He  told  me  he  had  been 
driving  the  coach  here  for  just  twenty-one  years ; 
but  to  hear  him  talk,  one  might  think  he  had  been 
driving  for  centuries,  and  had  known  the  island  in- 
timately since  the  days  of  its  Norman  conquerors. 
He  knew  the  very  spot  on  which  the  fugitive  Charles 
I.  landed,  the  room  in  which  he  was  imprisoned  in 
Carisbrooke  Castle,  and  pointed  out  the  very  win- 
dow from  which  the  unfortunate  King  made  several 
unsuccessful  attempts  to  escape.  Knew  Osburn 
House  perfectly,  and  seemed  intimately  acquainted 
with  the  private  chambers  occupied  by  Her  Majesty 
during  her  visits  to  the  island.  Had  heard  of  Legh 
Richmond,  and  the  Dairyman's  Daughter,  and  had 
even  gathered  iiowers  from  little  Jane's  grave  on 
one  occasion  for  one  of  his  lady  passengers.  His 
knowledge,  however,  was  confined  entirely  to  the 
island,  as  I  discovered  when  I  took  out  my  pipe  for 
a  smoke.  He  asked  me  where  I  had  got  such  a 
"  'orrid  houtlandish  pipe  ?"  Told  him  it  was  a  pipe 
I  had  ffot  an  artist  to  carve  for  me  in  Jerusalem, 


384  hal's  travels. 

from  a  knot  of  olive-wood.  He  repeated  the  word 
"Jerusalem"  several  times,  and  said  lie  thought  he 
had  heard  of  the  place  before.  Asked  if  it  was  in 
the  United  States. 

You  must  know  that  the  Isle  of  "Wight  seems 
almost  like  holy  ground  to  me.  Many  years  ago  I 
read  some  little  books  which  gave  me  a  strong 
desire  to  see  the  island;  and  now  that  I  am  upon 
it,  it  seems  that  I  am  treading  upon  sacred  soil. 
The  little  books  I  allude  to  are  those  written  by 
Rev.  Legh  Richmond,  the  foremost  and  best  of 
which  is,  I  think,  "The  Dairyman's  Daughter,"  a 
little  book  that  no  one  can  read  attentively  without 
profit;  and  I  heartily  recommend  it  to  all  my  young 
friends — ay,  and  older  ones  too.  Also,  the  "Young 
Cottager,"  and  "Cottage  Conversation."  Also, 
some  little  books  of  perhaps  no  less  value,  by  Rev. 
W.  Adams :  "  The  Shadow  of  the  Cross,"  "  The 
Distant  Hills,"  "The  Old  Man's  Home,"  and  "The 
King's  Messengers."  The  reading  of  these  little 
simple  stories  gave  a  charm  and  a  beauty  to  the 
whole  island  that  I  could  not  have  otherwise  seen. 
I  trust  they  may  all  continue  to  be  read  as  long  as 
time  lasts.  A  visit  to  some  of  the  old  churches  and 
churchyards  has  been  exceedingly  interesting,  and 
even  edifying.  Brading  Church,  where  the  good 
Richmond  used  to  preach  the  pure  and  simple 
gospel  truth,  is  a  pleasant  place  to  visit.  And  just 
beside  the  church  is  the  grave  of  "Little  Jane,"  the 
pure  "Young  Cottager,"  whose  simple  story  has 
been  so  extensively  and  profitably  read  by  multi- 


hal's    travels.  385 

tudes  of  people.     I  have  copied  the  Hues  inscribed 
on  her  tomb : 

"  Yc  who  the  power  of  God  delight  to  trace, 
And  mark  with  joy  each  monument  of  grace, 
Tread  lightly  o'er  this  grave,  as  ye  explore 
The  short  and  simple  annals  of  the  poor. 
A  child  reposes  underneath  this  sod — 
A  child  to  memory  dear,  and  dear  to  God. 
Rejoice,  yet  shed  the  sympathizing  tear, 
Jane,  the  'Young  Cottager,'  lies  buried  here!" 

In  Arreton  churchyard  is  the  grave  of  the  good 
and  lamented  Mr.  Adams.  It  is  a  simple,  unpre- 
tending tomb,  and  above  it  is  suspended  a  metal 
cross,  so  that  whenever  the  sun  shines,  its  shadow 
is  cast  upon  the  white  marble  slab  which  covers  the 
tomb.  This  was  done  in  honor  of  the  little  book  he 
wrote,  entitled,  "The  Shadow  of  the  Cross."  I 
thought  the  monument  quite  appropriate. 

In  the  same  churchyard  is  the  tomb  of  Elizabeth 
Wallbridge,  "The  Dairyman's  Daughter."  There 
are  three  grassy  hillocks  side  by  side.  One  of  these 
has  a  tombstone  to  the  memory  of  Elizabeth ;  an- 
other has  a  stone  in  memory  of  her  sister;  the 
other,  which  has  no  stone  at  all,  is  over  the  father 
and  mother.  I  also  copied  the  lines  from  this  tomb, 
rather  long,  but  at  the  risk  of  being  tedious  I  shall 
insert  them  here,  for  I  know  they  will  be  gladly 
read  by  all  who  have  read  the  touching  story  of 
"  The  Dairyman's  Daughter :" 

"  Stranger  !  if  e'er,  by  chance  or  feeling  led, 
Upon  this  hallowed  turf  thy  footsteps  tread, 
13 


386  HAL'S     TRAVELS. 

Turn  from  the  contemplation  of  the  sod, 
And  think  on  her  whose  spirit  rests  with  God. 
Lowly  her  lot  on  earth ;  but  He  who  bore 
Tidings  of  grace  and  blessings  to  the  poor, 
Gave  her,  his  truth  and  faithfulness  to  prove, 
The  choicest  treasures  of  liis  boundless  love  : 
Faith  that  dispelled  affliction's  darkest  gloom ; 
Hope,  that  could  cheer  the  passage  to  the  tomb ; 
Peace,  that  not  hell's  dark  legions  could  destroy ; 
And  Love,  that  filled  the  soul  with  heavenly  joy. 
Death  of  its  sting  disarmed,  she  knew  no  fear, 
But  tasted  heaven  e'en  while  she  lingered  here. 
0  happy  saint !  may  we,  like  thee,  be  blest — 
In  life  be  faithful,  and  in  death  find  rest !" 

We  also  found  it  pleasant  to  visit  tlie  cottages 
once  occupied  by  the  "Dairyman's  Daughter,"  and 
"  Little  Jane."  A  description  of  these  cottages  and 
churches,  and  the  surrounding  scenery,  will  be 
found  vividly  and  beautifully  depicted  in  the  little 
books  I  have  mentioned. 

I  have  written  more  than  I  intended,  but  I  hope 
you  will  read  it  with  good  nature.  I  shall  close 
now,  and  take  a  little  sleep.  To-morrow  we  go 
north,  to  visit  Oxford,  Warwick,  Stratfond-on-Avon, 
Kenilworth  Castle,  etc.  Will  finish  this  letter,  and 
mail  it,  after  I  have  seen  those  places.  For  the 
present,  adieu. 

Stratfoed-on-Avon,  June  21,  1860. 

The  thoughts  and  emotions  in  my  heart  this 
morning  are  almost  too  big  for  utterance.  To  be 
silent  would  therefore  be  more  seemly.  I  must  tell 
you,  however,  that  I  am  here — here  in  Stratford-on- 


hal's   travels.  387 

Avon — the  place  wlicrc  Sliakspeare  was  bom,  and 
lived,  and  died — and  wliere  his  bones  are  buried.  I 
have  seen  tbe  room  in  wliicli  lie  was  born — wliere 
lie  was  nursed,  "  mewling  and  puking  in  his  nurse's 
arms" — the  great  broad  lireplace  by  which  he  was 
taught  his  ABC,  and  where  he  was  no  doubt  often 
spanked  and  sent  to  bed  for  his  waywardness.  I 
have  sat  in  the  chair  in  which  he  sat,  and  seen  the 
table  on  which  he  wrote.  His  tomb  is  in  the  great 
old  church  which  stands  on  the  margin  of  the  sweet 
flowing  Avon,  and  his  famil}'  repose  beside  him. 

And  besides  the  emotions  caused  by  the  know- 
ledge that  I  am  where  Shakspcare  lived,  and  look 
upon  scenes  that  he  looked  upon,  I  am  even  domi- 
ciled at  the  "Red  Horse  Tavern,"  in  the  same 
room,  and  writing  upon  the  same  table  on  Avhich 
the  immortal  Geofircy  Crayon  wrote  his  sketches. 
His  picture  hangs  upon  the  wall,  and  the  identical 
sceptre  he  held  in  his  hand,  when  "monarch  of  all 
he  surveyed,"  is  reposing  by  the  fireplace,  in  the 
shape  of  a  huge  iron  poker.  The  words  "  Gcoifrey 
Crayon's  sceptre"  are  engraved  upon  it,  and  shown 
by  mine  host  with  much  gusto.  AYashington  Irving 
is  almost  as  well  known  here  as  Shakspearo. 

I  have  just  returned  from  a  pleasant  walk  of  a 
mile  across  the  fields  to  the  cottage  of  "  Sweet 
Anne  Hathaway."  Travelled  the  same  road,  no 
doubt,  that  wild  Will  used  to  travel,  when  paying 
stolen  visits  to  his  Anne,  when  she  was  less  repu- 
table, perhaps,  than  in  later  years.  It  is  a  neat 
thatch-roofed  cottage,  with  a  venerable  look,  and  is 


388  HAL'S     TRAVELS. 

said  to  be  still  occupied  by  descendants  of  the  Hatb- 
aways.  They  show  some  ancient  furniture,  said  to 
have  belonged  to  Anne. 

I  have  been  to  Warwick,  visited  Warwick  Castle 
and  Guy's  Cliff,  and  seen  many  things  there,  old, 
quaint,  and  curious.  Have  also  visited  Kenilworth 
Castle,  a  venerable  old  ruin.  Saw  the  tower  in 
which  the  lovely  but  unfortunate  Amy  Robsart  was 
confined,  and  was  shown  the  grotto  in  which  she 
was  discovered  by  Queen  Elizabeth,  on  her  visit  to 
Kenilworth.  But  all  these  things  are  too  much  to 
put  in  this  letter. 

We  now  leave  for  the  ancient  city  of  Chester, 
and  from  there  we  go  to  Bangor,  in  Wales,  to  see 
the  great  tubular  and  suspension  bridges  across  the 
Aienai  Straits,  and  the  immense  slate  quarry  near 
that  town,  where  four  thousand  eight  hundred  men 
are  engaged  in  quarrying  slate.  Then,  ho !  for  a 
visit  to  the  "cannie  Scots"  and  the  "wild  Irish- 
men."    So,  till  you  hear  from  me  again,  good-bye. 

Hal. 

P.  S. — I  will  not  bore  you  with  the  political  news 
from  this  side  the  water;  but  really  the  Eastern 
world  seems  to  be  in  a  ferment.  Sicily,  under  the 
influence  of  Garibaldi,  is  boiling  like  a  pot — Naples 
seems  on  the  eve  of  being  wiped  out — the  Vatican  is 
thundering  ominously,  and  Ireland  is  in  a  stew, 
sending  off  recruits  for  the  army  of  his  Holiness — 
Sardinia  is  trembling  between  the  menaces  of  Eome 
and  Austria — Turkey  is  cowering  beneath  the  out- 


HAL'S     TRAVELS.  389 

stretched  claw  of  Eussia ;  and  even  John  Bull  is 
turning  pale  before  the  fancied  hostile  intentions 
of  the  French  Emperor.  So  you  see  Europe  is  in  a 
perfect  hubbub.  And  even  in  Asia  Minor  the  work 
of  blood  is  going  on.  I  have  just  received  a  letter 
from  the  American  Consul  in  Beyrout,  which  closes 
as  follows  : 

"  Syria  is  now  in  a  blaze  of  civil  war.  More  than 
sixty  villages  have  been  burned.  Hundreds  of 
Christians  have  been  killed,  and  the  work  of  blood 
is  still  progressing.  The  Druses,  aided  by  the 
Turks,  obtain  the  victory  everywhere.  We  are 
only  saved  from  a  Moslem  insurrection  in  Beyrout 
by  the  presence  of  a  Russian  frigate." 

This  war  was  brewing  when  I  was  in  Beyrout. 

H. 


390  HAL'S    TRAVELS. 


CONCLUSION. 


Now,  good  friends,  we  will  cease  our  wanderings. 
"We  have  had  a  long  tour,  which  I  trust  you  have 
found  pleasant,  and  not  altogether  unprofitable. 
"We  have  seen  much  to  condemn,  and  much  to 
approve ;  much  to  laugh  at,  and  much  to  sorrow 
over.  "We  have  pressed  through  swarms  of  gaunt 
beggars,  and  jostled  against  gilded  nobility — the 
oppressed  and  oppressors  crowding  along  the  same 
streets.  The  latter  we  looked  upon  with  indigna- 
tion, while  we  enjoy  the  consoling  thought  that  our 
coppers  have  often  appeased  the  gnawing  hunger  of 
the  former.  We  have  been  often  vexed  by  police 
and  custom-house  officers,  and  cheated  times  almost 
without  number.  But  these  are  petty  annoyances 
that  all  must  submit  to  who  go  out  to  see  the  world 
as  it  is,  and  they  should  be  borne  with  patience. 

At  some  future  time  I  may  ask  you  to  accom- 
pany me  further  through  the  kingdom  of  Great 
Britain,  when  we  will  visit  the  manufacturing  cities 
and  rural  districts  of  England,  the  mountainous 
regions  of  Wales,  the  cities  and  highlands  of  Scot- 
land, when  we  will  climb  the  Bens  and  sail  upon 


hal's    travels.  391 

the  Lochs  of  that  classic  country ;  and  then  through 
Ireland,  where  "praties"  abound,  and  many  queer 
things  are  to  he  seen. 

For  the  present,  farewell ;  and  may  the  remainder 
of  your  journey  through  life  be  as  pleasant  as  our 
late  travels  have  been  to  me  !     So  mote  it  be. 


THE     END, 


Date  Due 

'AurH*3^^ 

nwfe^  '^  •'*' 

APR  3  0  '4^ 

1 

Llbrvy  Buraaa   Cat.  no.     1137 

914   W656 


1637 


Wiggg 


Hal*s  Travels 


ISSUED   TO 


i:36^_ 


IPB3  0  ^5    ^4^d. 


914        W656 


163745 


